South Korea’s central bank stood pat on interest rates for a fifth straight time as widely expected and maintained its 2023 economic growth and inflation forecasts. The Bank of Korea kept the benchmark seven-day repurchase rate unchanged at 3.50% on Thursday, continuing a pause in its policy tightening amid signs that the economy is cooling, with inflation having eased to a 25-month low of 2.3% last month and exports having declined on year for a 10th consecutive month in July.
The bank seems to be shifting away from its rate-increase campaign aimed at curbing inflation. All 25 analysts surveyed by The Wall Street Journal ahead of the bank’s decision had forecast no rate move in August, with a majority of them expecting the bank to stand pat through 2023. Some penciled in a rate cut late this year or early next year to help boost growth. The country’s gross domestic product is forecast to expand 1.4% in 2023, unchanged from its May projection, following the previous year’s 2.6% growth, the bank said Thursday. Inflation is expected to average 3.5% …
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