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Japan ends negative interest rates after eight years
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STORY: Japan's central bank ended eight years of negative interest rates on Tuesday, ringing in a new era of monetary policy in the country.

It's the first rate hike in 17 years...

But the Bank of Japan is keeping rates around zero, moving cautiously amid the country's fragile economic recovery.

Japan is aiming to shift away from a focus on reflating growth with decades of massive monetary stimulus, so the decision was widely expected.

Tokyo's central bank is the last in the world to exit negative rates, ending a time where global policymakers used cheap money and unconventional monetary tools to try to prop up growth.

The BOJ on Tuesday also scrapped a policy aimed at capping long-term interest rates around zero, known as yield curve control.

Though the bank said it will keep buying "broadly the same amount" of government bonds as before and ramp up purchases, in case yields rise rapidly.

A spike in bond yields would make funding Japan's huge public debt more expensive.

The country's public debt is already twice the size of its GDP and the largest among advanced economies.

Analysts say Tuesday's announcement will have a very small actual impact on the economy.

The central bank is expected to keep monetary conditions loose.

And no major hike in household mortgage rates or funding costs are expected.

But an end to the world's last remaining provider of cheap funds could jolt global financial markets.

After amassing overseas investments in search of yields, Japanese investors may now look to shift money back to their home country.