Half of Japan Hasn’t Heard of the Central Bank’s Stimulus Plan

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Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda’s epic challenge has been as much about changing the way people think as it has been the intricacies of interest rates and the money supply.

So one assumes it had to sting a little when the central bank’s latest quarterly survey of households found that 50 percent of respondents "have never heard of" Kuroda’s historic monetary stimulus program. That’s the highest level since the question was introduced in September 2013, six months after Kuroda took over at the BOJ.

It might help explain why Kuroda’s goal of uprooting Japan’s deflationary mindset isn’t exactly going according to plan. Kuroda has repeatedly said in recent years those expectations have proved more entrenched than he first thought.

Read more about the BOJ’s $3.5 trillion of cash and ordinary Japanese

The survey was conducted Feb. 7-March 5 and received 2,127 responses.

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