BOJ can shrink balance sheet at appropriate pace: Kuroda

TOKYO (Reuters) - Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said on Monday he was confident the central bank can shrink its balance sheet at an appropriate pace when it exits ultra-loose monetary policy.

He also said the BOJ's government bond buying was aimed at achieving its 2 percent inflation target, not at bank-rolling public debt.

Kuroda made the comments in parliament, when asked by an opposition lawmaker about the BOJ's ultra-loose policy.

(Reporting by Leika Kihara; Editing by Shri Navaratnam)