By Leika Kihara
TOKYO (Reuters) – A wide range of Japanese firms see the need to continue raising wages due to structural labour shortages, the Bank of Japan said on Thursday.
In a statement analysing regional economies, the central bank added that many areas saw broadening price hikes by firms seeking to generate the proceeds from which to pay higher wages.
Some firms said they have yet to decide how much they would raise pay this year, while other smaller companies remained cautious about hiking wages due to the impact of higher costs on profits, the BOJ said in the statement.
“On the other hand, some firms were already discussing details on the pace of rate hikes. Taken together, there were many reports saying a wide range of firms see the need to keep hiking wages,” it said.
(Reporting by Leika Kihara; Editing by Clarence Fernandez and Sam Holmes)
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