Some policy-setting board members of the Bank of Japan called for interest rate cuts in January to deal with downside risk factors to the nation's economy, according to the minutes of the Jan. 19 Policy Board meeting released Monday.
At the meeting, however, the board voted 8-1 to leave the overnight unsecured call money lending rate at around 0.25 percent.
"It may be time to conduct rate cuts as pre-emptive monetary measures," the minutes quote one board member as saying at the meeting.
Another board member said the BOJ should consider cutting rates if a situation develops in which a gradual economic recovery derails, the minutes says.
The report also says a continuation of sluggish share prices could shock the economy by rekindling problems in the financial sector and causing a fall in the volume of loans issued.
During policy meetings on Feb. 9 and Feb. 28, the central bank decided to cut its official discount rate from 0.5 percent to a record low 0.25 percent. At the Feb. 28 meeting, the BOJ also cut the key overnight call money rate by 0.1 percentage point to 0.15 percent.
A number of members called for future interest rate cuts or "flexible monetary policy" to stem a reversal in the nation's economy, while one member called for an immediate cut in rates to stem a downturn, the January minutes show.