FACTBOX-Profiles of Bank of Japan policy board members

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TOKYO Nov 20 (Reuters) - Following are profiles of the Bank of Japan's policy board members. The board currently has one vacancy.

MASAAKI SHIRAKAWA, 60, governor

A career central banker who took the helm of the BOJ in April 2008, Shirakawa led the implementation of unconventional policy steps including corporate debt buying in the wake of the collapse of U.S. investment bank Lehman Brothers later that year.

While the BOJ decided in October to begin withdrawing from credit markets, Shirakawa has vowed to maintain very low interest rates to support Japan's fragile economy.

Previously an economics professor, he has been cautious about the economy, repeating that the outlook is highly uncertain and the country's deflation may last longer than initially expected.

He has warned that Japan may experience prolonged deflation, although he has stuck to the BOJ's official line that the country will not tip into a deflationary spiral, in which weakness in the economy and price falls feed off each other.

Markets regard Shirakawa as neutral on monetary policy.

HIROHIDE YAMAGUCHI, 58, deputy governor

A central banker for more than 30 years, Yamaguchi was a BOJ executive director when he was appointed to his current position in October 2008.

Yamaguchi, who is thought to be close in views to Shirakawa, has mostly toed the BOJ's official line on monetary policy.

He has said that despite recent falls in consumer prices, Japan is not in a deflationary spiral.

Yamaguchi said in early November that the chances of Japan returning to recession soon are small, as the economy continues to recover modestly.

KIYOHIKO NISHIMURA, 56, deputy governor

A former University of Tokyo professor and a statistics expert, Nishimura joined the BOJ board in 2005 and was appointed deputy governor in March 2008.

Nishimura, who has voted with the majority on policy decisions, warned in October that risks facing Japan's economy remain high, indicating the central bank must stick to its easy monetary policy for now. [ID:nT241598]

HIDETOSHI KAMEZAKI, 66

Kamezaki, a former senior executive vice president of Japan's biggest trading firm, Mitsubishi Corp, joined the board in April 2007. He has broad overseas experience at the trading house.

He was among four dissenters when the BOJ cut rates to 0.3 percent last October, calling instead for a cut to 0.25 percent.

He has voted with the board and toed the BOJ's official line since then.

In June, Kamezaki warned that the waves of government debt being issued around the world to fund stimulus measures could push up interest rates. [ID:nT144918]

ATSUSHI MIZUNO, 50

Mizuno, a well-known bond strategist before joining the BOJ and the youngest member of the board, had been considered hawkish on monetary policy when times were good for the economy.

But he then became more pessimistic, warning in August that weak overseas growth may pose a risk to the BOJ's forecast for a moderate recovery later this year.

His term expires on Dec. 2. The government on Thursday tipped Ryuzo Miyao, 45, an academic close to the BOJ's thinking, as a candidate to replace Mizuno. [ID:nT259620]

Mizuno has said there was little the BOJ could do to beat deflation short-term. But he also said central banks have the option of announcing their commitment to maintain low rates if the economic outlook undershoots forecasts.

Mizuno was one of four board members who voted against the BOJ's decision to cut rates in October 2008, arguing that such a move would do little to boost the economy.

He supported the BOJ's subsequent rate cut in December and called for unconventional policy steps in February to prevent the economy from worsening further.

SEIJI NAKAMURA, 67

Nakamura, who joined the board in April 2007, was formerly head of a unit of Mitsui OSK Lines, Japan's second-biggest ocean freight firm. His career was spent mostly in the finance and planning sections of Mitsui OSK.

He was among the four dissenters when the BOJ cut rates to 0.3 percent in October 2008, calling instead for a cut to 0.25 percent. He has toed the BOJ's official line since then.

MIYAKO SUDA, 61

A former economics professor, Suda is seen by markets as holding hawkish views on monetary policy and has been more critical than other board members of the idea of the BOJ buying corporate debt.

She was the sole opponent of the BOJ's decision in January to buy corporate bonds maturing within a year, arguing that such a step would do little to ease credit strains. (Reporting by Tetsushi Kajimoto)