Private consumption is likely to be pushed down for some time due to the effects of the scheduled consumption tax hike, but is expected to continue increasing as the employment and income situation continues to improve. Public investment also is likely to increase, reflecting Olympic Games-related demand and expansion in expenditure such as for national resilience.
In two unscheduled meetings, we voted on March 3 and March 15 to cut the target range for the federal funds rate by a total of 150 basis points to its current range of 0 to 25 basis points.2 In our FOMC statements, we have indicated we expect to maintain the target range at this level until we are confident that the economy has weathered recent events and is on track to achieve our maximum-employment and price-stability goals.