Economists See Strong Chance of Second Term for Kuroda

(Bloomberg) -- Haruhiko Kuroda is considered a contender to get a second term as Bank of Japan governor by a majority of economists who offered an opinion on the matter ahead of a policy meeting this week.

A third of them listed him as the only possible contender to lead the central bank after his current term ends in April 2018, according to a survey by Bloomberg.

"The chances of Kuroda doing another term are more than 60 percent," said Yasunari Ueno, the chief market economist at Mizuho Securities Co. in Tokyo. If Kuroda declines another term, then Columbia University professor Takatoshi Ito is the most likely person, according to Ueno. 

Hiroshi Ugai, chief economist at JPMorgan Securities Japan Co., said Kuroda is the most likely choice, while BOJ Executive Director Masayoshi Amamiya is another possibility.

Other names mentioned by those surveyed were Japan’s ambassador to Switzerland, Etsuro Honda, BOJ Deputy Governor Hiroshi Nakaso and Nobuchika Mori, head of Japan’s Financial Services Agency.

The terms of the two deputy governors end in March next year.

Click here to see the full survey.

None of the economists surveyed said they see the BOJ changing policy this week, and the vast majority don’t expect any change until after Kuroda’s current term ends.

More than 80 percent of those who see tightening as the BOJ’s next move don’t see it happening until after April next year, up from less than half who held that view in the survey prior to the last meeting.

--With assistance from Dru Ann Love

To contact the reporters on this story: James Mayger in Tokyo at jmayger@bloomberg.net, Masahiro Hidaka in Tokyo at mhidaka@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Brett Miller at bmiller30@bloomberg.net, James Mayger, Henry Hoenig