BoJ in focus as Israel, Turkey, Taiwan, Philippines and Hungary to set rates

With no G10 economies in the policy decision calendar, this week's central banks in focus will be the Bank of Japan which will release the minutes of the latest policy meeting and the Swiss National Bank for the second quarter bulletin.

From the emerging world, Israel will announce rates on Monday (22 June) and Turkey and Hungary on Tuesday; the Philippines, Taiwan and the Czech Republic will set rates on Thursday.

The BoJ had left rates and the broader monetary policy including quantitative easing unchanged at the 19 June meeting saying growth and inflation are picking up in the country.

In its 30 April review, the BoJ had slashed the growth and inflation forecast adding to the downward revision in inflation projection in January. The press briefing by BoJ officials on Tuesday will throw light on how the central bank views the general situation.

Israel, Hungary and Turkey are on an easing cycle of late but only Hungary cut its main rate in the last meeting. After the mid-March cut from 0.25%, Israel's main rate has been held at 0.1% and the forecast for this month's meeting is also for no change.

Turkey's benchmark lending rate has been lowered by 75 basis points this year to 7.5% and expectations are for more cuts in the coming months, especially after the revision in the deposit rate earlier this month.

The Turkish central bank on 9 June reduced the rate of banks' one-week borrowings from the apex bank from 4% to 3.5% for the dollar and from 2% to 1.5% for the euro.

Armenia is also scheduled to review its monetary policy this week, where the central bank is on a tightening cycle.

The headline inflation rate has accelerated to 7.5% by April from near 0.4% a year ago in the former Soviet country. The country has therefore hiked the main policy rate to 10.5% by February this year from less than 7% in November last year.

Hungary slashed the rate by 15 basis points to 1.6% at the May review and analysts expect the rate to be cut to 1.5% at this week's review.

No change is expected in Taiwan where the main rate has been held at 1.875% since 2011. If anything, the central bank has to sound dovish as the country has been in deflation as per the past five readings.

At the May meeting, the Philippines' central bank left its key policy rate unchanged for the fifth consecutive time at 4%, saying inflation risks remain balanced. The market consensus is for no change this time.