With no tangible signs of a return to a more normal pricing environment, we expect the BoJ to increase rates only at a gradual pace and keep our 12 months rate target in the 0.75%-1% region.

It will be a long time before sales return to 17m a year, the level until recently regarded as "normal" by an industry accustomed to pumping up demand with cheap credit and suicidal pricing.

The aim of towns water pricing is to insure normal demand and to restrict superfluous demand.