The Bank of Japan has decided to leave its super-low interest rates unchanged at 0.5% at the end of a two-day meeting. The decision had been widely expected.
The central bank's policy board voted unanimously to keep the benchmark lending rate on hold for a 15th straight month.
No change had been expected given uncertainty about the outlook for the Japanese and global economies.
Japan's economy has so far held up better than expected amid a global economic slowdown as robust exports to China and other emerging markets offset weaker demand in the US for Japanese cars and other goods.
