Japan finmin Suzuki says it’s wrong to assume BOJ will buy bonds indefinitely

TOKYO, May 13 (Reuters) – Japanese Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki said on Friday it was inappropriate to guide fiscal policy on the assumption the central bank will keep buying government bonds indefinitely.

“The Bank of Japan is buying government bonds as part of its monetary policy efforts to achieve its inflation target,” Suzuki told a news conference.

Japanese policymakers have scrambled to reassure markets the government was not forcing the BOJ to bankroll public debt, after former premier Shinzo Abe on Monday described the central bank as a government “subsidiary” that can fund its spending indefinitely. nL3N2X2253

(Reporting by Leika Kihara; Editing by Tom Hogue)

((leika.kihara@thomsonreuters.com; +813-6441-1828; Reuters Messaging: leika.kihara.reuters.com@reuters.net))