A deputy governor for the Bank of Japan says the BOJ will not entirely abandon its ultra-loose monetary policy, even if it ends negative interest rates.

Uchida Shinichi said on Thursday that achieving the bank's goal of 2-percent inflation is becoming more realistic, but the outlook remains uncertain. The BOJ has set the goal as a condition for changing its massive monetary easing.

Uchida said that when inflation stays at 2 percent, monetary easing will have fulfilled its role. The bank would then consider policy revisions, taking into account wage hikes and other data.

But he said that even if the BOJ ends the negative rate policy, it's unlikely rates will keep going up. He said the bank will maintain relatively easy monetary policy.

Uchida also touched on yield curve control. Under the current framework, the BOJ buys government bonds to control interest rates.

He indicated that if the bank starts reviewing the framework, it won't drastically change the volume of bond purchases, and will ensure that interest rates do not surge.

Some financial market players believe the BOJ is preparing for a policy change. They will be keeping a close eye on the bank's meeting in March.