Japan central bank keeps interest rate near zero

TOKYO (AP) — Japan's central bank on Friday kept its key interest rate unchanged at nearly zero and extended by six months an emergency loan program for disaster-hit regions.

The Bank of Japan's nine-member policy board voted unanimously at a two-day meeting to maintain the overnight call rate target at zero to 0.1 percent.

It described the world's No. 3 economy as "picking up" and predicted an eventual return to a moderate recovery despite concerns about the health of the global economy.

Industrial production figures last week showed that output had nearly recovered to the levels recorded before the March 11 earthquake and tsunami devastated northeastern Japan. Exports …