A policy called "quantitative easing" (量的金融緩和, "ryōteki kin'yū kanwa") was first used by the Bank of Japan (BOJ) to stop domestic deflation in the early 2000s. The BOJ had kept short-term interest rates at close to zero since 1999. The Bank of Japan had for many years, and as late as February 2001, said that "quantitative easing ... is not effective". They did not like to use it for monetary policy.