A hawkish Bank of Japan board member on Thursday emphasized the need for the central bank to resume interest rate hikes soon to avoid market shocks from possible rapid policy shifts later.

Naoki Tamura said in a speech in Naha, Okinawa Prefecture that while he does not advocate an immediate hike “to a restrictive level,” he believes the bank is “now in the phase of deciding on raising its policy interest rate” given that risks to prices are “becoming more skewed to the upside.”

The benchmark rate should be set “a little closer to the neutral interest rate,” at which the economy is neither stimulated nor slowed, he said.

His remarks come amid receding expectations for an imminent rate increase by the BOJ after Sanae Takaichi, known as a fiscal dove, was elected president of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party on Oct. 4.

If the BOJ acts “too late” and prices rise significantly more than expected, it would have to raise its policy rate rapidly, which “could ultimately inflict significant damage on Japan’s economy,” Tamura said.

Japan’s core consumer prices have stayed at or above the central bank’s 2 percent inflation target for more than three years, often exceeding 3 percent, partly reflecting elevated food costs.

Market participants have been focusing on the timing of the BOJ’s next policy move after it kept its benchmark rate at around 0.5 percent for the fifth consecutive meeting in September to assess the impact of higher U.S. tariffs.

Tamura was one of the two board members who voted against the decision and proposed a rate increase to around 0.75 percent at the most recent gathering.

The BOJ is scheduled to hold its next meeting in late October, followed by another in December.