KONTAN.CO.ID - SEOUL. South Korea's central bank raised interest rates by a more modest 25 basis points on Thursday, slowing the pace of policy tightening as it tries to tame inflation without choking off economic growth. The Bank of Korea (BOK) raised its benchmark policy rate to 3.25% on Thursday, the highest level since 2012, after delivering a half-percentage point hike in October. It also significantly downgraded growth projections for 2023 to 1.7% from 2.1% previously, while sticking to this year's 2.6% growth forecast. Inflation forecasts for next year were cut to 3.6% from 3.7% previously.
South Korean Central Bank Hikes Rates by 25 Bps, Slows Tightening Pace
KONTAN.CO.ID - SEOUL. South Korea's central bank raised interest rates by a more modest 25 basis points on Thursday, slowing the pace of policy tightening as it tries to tame inflation without choking off economic growth. The Bank of Korea (BOK) raised its benchmark policy rate to 3.25% on Thursday, the highest level since 2012, after delivering a half-percentage point hike in October. It also significantly downgraded growth projections for 2023 to 1.7% from 2.1% previously, while sticking to this year's 2.6% growth forecast. Inflation forecasts for next year were cut to 3.6% from 3.7% previously.