In a widely expected move, South Korea’s central bank on Friday left its benchmark interest rate unchanged for a second straight month in May.
In the monthly rate-setting meeting, the Monetary Policy Committee of the Bank of Korea (BOK) decided to hold the base rate steady at a record low of 1.75 percent.
The freeze was in line with a poll by Yonhap Infomax, the financial news arm of Yonhap News Agency. A whopping 12 out of 13 analysts had forecast the BOK to stand pat on the rate to further monitor economic indicators and growing household debt.
The central bank has implemented three rate cuts since the second half of last year — in August, October and March — in efforts to shore up growth in Asia’s fourth-largest economy. In its latest economic outlook updated on April 9, the BOK expected Asia’s fourth-largest economy to grow 3.1 percent this year. (Yonhap)
