In contrast, they declined further after the expansion of QQE and have recently returned to around the level seen before such expansion. These fluctuations in long-term interest rates appear to be attributable not only to monetary policy but also to external factors, and therefore should be assessed carefully.
That being said, if the effects of monetary policy are produced by the declines in nominal or real interest rates, due attention should be paid to the possibility that liquidity premiums in the JGB markets – brought about by the Bank’s massive JGB purchases – might in part be weakening the effects of monetary policy.