BOJ's Ueda hints at room for more hikes, stays flexible on pace, timing

TOKYO -- The Bank of Japan decided Friday to implement its third interest rate increase in a year, raising the policy rate by 25 basis points to 0.5%, as the central bank tries to strike a delicate balance between supporting the domestic economy and keeping the yen from weakening further against the dollar, amid uncertainties about the global economy with Donald Trump as the new U.S. president.

"There is still a considerable distance to the neutral interest rate" -- a level that is neither stimulative nor restrictive to the economy, BOJ Gov. Kazuo Ueda said in a press conference. He stopped short of referring to a particular level, but mentioned a range of 1.0-2.5% as an estimate obtained from one BOJ study.