The Bank of Japan (BoJ) released its interest rate decision on Friday. The BoJ kept its monetary policy unchanged (interest rate: 0.00-0.10%, monetary base target: 275 trillion yen). The central bank said that it will expand its monetary base at an annual pace of 80 trillion yen, adding that the average maturity of the Japanese government bonds was increased to seven to 12 years from seven to 10 years.

The BoJ also said that it will annually purchase ¥300 billion of ETFs (exchange-traded funds) issued by companies that are making investment in physical and human capital. This decision was not expected by analysts.

Only 6 of 9 board members backed new measures, while three board members voted against new measures.