Japan's central bank holds rates steady

Japan's benchmark interest rate remains steady at minus 0.1 per cent following a meeting by the Bank of Japan.

Japan's central bank has kept its monetary policy steady, as the US Federal Reserve and European Central Bank move toward tightening.

The Bank of Japan ended a policy meeting on Thursday by keeping the minus 0.1 per cent benchmark interest rate unchanged while working toward a two per cent inflation rate target.

The central bank is buying about 80 trillion yen ($A918 billion) a year of Japanese government bonds to inject more cash into the economy.

Interest rates are near zero. with the aim to use expectations of inflation to stimulate more spending and borrowing by businesses and consumers.

The BOJ said in a statement the economy, which grew one per cent in 2016, was still on a "moderate recovery trend".