This is mainly because the mindset and behavior based on the assumption that wages and prices will not increase easily have been deeply entrenched among firms and households, due to the experience of prolonged low growth and deflation. Under these circumstances, the consumption tax rate was raised in October.
However, we have come to realize that the attention paid to CPIX inflation may have created the misperception that it was the target for monetary policy rather than a useful operational guide. Going forward, we have decided that only the projection for CPI inflation will be included in the MPR to reinforce its role as the target for monetary policy.