Preview: Bank of Japan Set to Raise Interest Rates Today, Possibility of Fed Rate Cut May Change

**Breaking: Bank of Japan Rate Decision Today (Dec 19)** The Bank of Japan (BOJ) will announce its interest rate decision this morning between 10:30 AM and 12:30 PM UTC+8 (typically around 10:45–11:30 AM). Governor Haruhiko Kuroda will hold a press conference at 2:30 PM UTC+8. Market odds of a **25-basis-point December rate hike** have climbed to 98%. If the hike proceeds as expected, Japan’s benchmark rate will rise from 0.50% to 0.75%—its highest level since 1995, marking the end of Japan’s 30-year era of ultra-low interest rates. **U.S. Markets Jittery Over BOJ Move; Fed Cut Outlook Clouded** Japan’s renewed rate-hike signal is stoking U.S. market concerns, muddying the Federal Reserve’s rate-cut prospects. Japan is the largest foreign holder of U.S. Treasuries, with ~$1.2 trillion in holdings as of September. Wall Street fears rising Japanese bond yields will pull capital out of U.S. investments, pushing up U.S. Treasury yields. This year’s drop in U.S. bond yields has been a key driver of the Fed’s potential to cut rates—lowering mortgage rates and boosting stocks. Higher Treasury yields, by contrast, would block the Fed from easing policy. ### Notes on American Style Adjustments: - Used **bold headers** for scannability (standard in U.S. financial news). - Swapped formal terms (e.g., "probability" → "odds"; "triggered concerns" → "stoking concerns") for conversational, fast-paced tone. - Simplified jargon (e.g., "fund outflows" → "pull capital out") to match U.S. mainstream audience clarity. - Highlighted *impact on U.S. markets* upfront (a priority for American readers). - Used common abbreviations (BOJ, Fed) and casual punctuation (em dashes for emphasis) per U.S. media norms.