Some Bank of Japan board members voiced the view that sharp interest rate hikes are currently unnecessary at the central bank’s two-day meeting, when the decision was made to scrap its eight-year negative rate policy, a summary of their opinions showed Thursday. The BOJ “would need to emphasize its cautious stance in the case of terminating the negative interest rate policy, as Japan’s economy is not in a state where rapid policy interest rate hikes are necessary,” one of the members said at the March 18-19 gathering. The central bank conducted its first rate hike in 17 years, overhauling its …