BOJ Regional Econ Report Likely Bleak - Analysts

BOJ regional economic report due 0530 GMT likely to paint a bleaker picture of nationwide economy compared to April report, as corporate sector environment growing increasingly severe, analysts say. In April BOJ downgraded overall view of economy as well as assessments of 8 out of 9 regions due to weakening corporate activity on rising raw material costs. Daiwa Securities SMBC strategist Mari Iwashita says considering goal of monetary policy is to secure stable growth amid price stability, "the BOJ won't raise interest rates until there are signs that the economy is starting to improve." Adds while Japan core CPI may rise to around 2% temporarily over next few months, gains remain limited to energy, food and compared to U.S., Europe, inflation in Japan remains low; "prices are stable," Iwashita adds