The Bank of Japan kept its policy unchanged on Thursday, taking a pause that about half the market had anticipated.
Following a two-day policy meeting that ended Thursday, the central bank said that its target rate would remain 0.25%.
Analysts were nearly evenly split in a poll earlier this month on whether the central bank would increase rates to 0.5% or keep them where they are and wait until the January meeting to make a move.
The mood changed slightly in recent days.
Several media reports over the past week have indicated that the Bank of Japan would hold off, and the markets have been discounting that possibility.
The Bank of Japan ended negative rates in March with its first increase since 2007, and then raised rates again in July in a surprise jump to the current 0.25%.
BOJ Gov. Kazuo Ueda is scheduled to give a news conference later on Thursday.
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