TOKYO -- When the Bank of Japan began its program of monetary easing -- printing money to buy bonds -- almost two decades ago, the idea was to snap the country out of its long deflationary funk. Now the bank is waking up to the side effects: banks that are barely profitable and reluctant to lend.
Economy
Bank of Japan wakes up to the downside of monetary easing
Expressions of concern over weak lenders reflect shift in priorities for central bank