SINGAPORE, Dec 19 Reuters The yen fell broadly on Tuesday after the Bank of Japan BOJ kept its ultraloose monetary policy unchanged and maintained its forward guidance in a closely awaited decision at the conclusion of its twoday policy meeting.

The yen slid more than 0.6 against the U.S. dollar to a sessionlow of 143.78 following the decision , though it later pared some of those losses. The yen last stood at 143.46 per dollar.

Against the euro, the yen likewise weakened to a oneweek low of 157, and was last roughly 0.5 lower at 156.72 per euro .

While the outcome was in line with market expectations, some investors were on the lookout for signs on whether the dovish central bank might signal an eventual move away from negative interest rates.

Before the meeting, there were expectations for policy changes, including wording amendments in the statement, said SMBC39;s chief FX strategist, Hirofumi Suzuki.

The movement of a weaker yen is unlikely to become a trend, partly because expectations remain for a policy revision for JanuaryMarch next year.

Market focus now turns to Governor Kazuo Ueda39;s press conference later in the day for further guidance on the bank39;s policy outlook.

The BOJ will not hesitate to take additional easing steps if necessary, the central bank said in a statement, adding that uncertainty regarding the economy was extremely high.

In an environment where the combined value of the government39;s balance sheet alongside other reporting…