Bank of Korea minutes suggest another interest rate cut imminent

SEOUL (Reuters) -Many of the Financial institution of Korea’s board members assessed headwinds to South Korea’s economic system have been rising sooner than anticipated, an element that might warrant extra rate of interest cuts, minutes from final month’s assembly confirmed on Wednesday.

“With financial progress this 12 months anticipated to fall in need of earlier forecasts because of the financial slowdown, the necessity for preemptive rate of interest cuts is rising,” one of many seven board members mentioned, based on the minutes from the financial institution’s April 17 charge evaluation.

The BOK’s seven-member board on April 17 held the benchmark rate of interest at 2.75% as anticipated at its financial coverage evaluation and signaled it could minimize charges in Might to deal with “important” dangers to the economic system from U.S. President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariff coverage.

A majority of economists surveyed by Reuters anticipate the BOK to decrease the benchmark rate of interest to 2.25% by the top of the third quarter of this 12 months as shifting U.S. tariff coverage fuels fears of a world recession and threatens to sharply curtail exports out of Asia’s fourth-largest economic system.

The BOK subsequent critiques coverage rates of interest on Might 29.

(Reporting by Cynthia KimEditing by Ed Davies)