World Business Briefing: Asia: South Korea: Interest Rate Is Raised
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The Bank of Korea raised its benchmark interest rate for the first time in nearly a year amid fears that bank lending to smaller businesses, stronger economic growth and higher oil prices could stoke inflation. The central bank said it had raised its overnight call rate target for loans to commercial banks to 4.75 percent from 4.5 percent. It was the first increase since one of similar size in August.
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CHINA has raised its interest rates for the first time in nine years to curb inflation and stop its fast-growing economy overheating.
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The People&#39;s Bank of China, China&#39;s central bank, announced yesterday that it would raise both lending and deposit interest rates 0.27 percentage point as of today.
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China&#39;s central bank raised interest rates Thursday for the first time in nearly a decade, signaling a deep unease with the breakneck pace of development
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The Swedish central bank Riksbank said on Friday it has decided to raise its key interest rate by a quarter of a percentage point to 3.75 percent to counter inflationary pressures.
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Another rise in interest rates, the fifth this year, is likely to hit homeowners and property investors. The Reserve Bank today increased the Official Cash Rate (OCR) by a quarter of one per cent to 6.25 per cent.
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Beijing, Oct. 28 (PTI): China today raised its interest rates for the first time in nine years to consolidate macro economic adjustment and ensure healthy growth of the economy, the apex bank said here.
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The Bank of Japan will raise interest rates next week for the first time in nearly six years in a sign that the Japanese economy is gaining momentum, news reports say.
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South Koreaâs industrial output rose in April, helped by increased exports of chips and cars. Manufacturing production jumped 3.1 percent from March, the largest gain in seven months, the National Statistical Office said. Output rose 6.7 percent from a year earlier. Corporate investment in factories surged 15.6 percent in April from a year earlier, the biggest gain since September 2006, the report showed. The figures also showed an index of economic indicators climbed 5.1 percent in April from a year earlier after rising 4.9 percent in March.
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South KoreaÂs central bank ordered lenders to raise reserves held against foreign currency deposits, the second time in two weeks it has tried to curb borrowing. The reserve requirement ratio on short-term foreign currency deposits rose to 7 percent from 5 percent, the Bank of Korea said. The move brings the ratio into line with that for local currency demand deposits and reduces the incentive for banks to lend foreign currencies to home buyers. ÂThis is targeted at the property market,Â said Go You-sun, an economist at Daewoo Securities in Seoul. ÂItÂs a supplementary measure to the reserve requirement ratio increase they announced earlier. The results will take time to show, but this effectively reduces the amount of loans a bank can give.Â.
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The Reserve Bank has raised the Official Cash Rate by a further 25 basis points, to 6.5 percent. It&#39;s the sixth rate rise this year, and matches market anticipations.
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Rising energy and transport costs helped push inflation higher last month, raising the prospect that interest rates may increase next year.
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The Swiss National Bank raised its key interest rate by a quarter of a percentage point and raised its economic growth forecast for the year. Switzerlandâs central bank said it decided at its quarterly policy-setting meeting to raise rates to 2.50 percent from the previous 2.25 percent. The increase, expected by analysts, was the ninth successive increase in recent years and puts the rate at its highest level since 2001. The move mirrors a decision last week by the European Central Bank, which raised its key interest rate from 3.75 percent to 4 percent. The Swiss central bank also raised its expectations for growth in gross domestic product this year to 2.5 percent from 2 percent.
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The Federal Reserve raised short-term interest rates on Wednesday and signaled that it intends to keep raising rates in the months to come.
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South Korea's trade surplus hits a record level in June, making an interest rate rise more likely at next week's policy meeting.
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South Koreaâs central bank kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged for a sixth month after consumer prices increased at the slowest pace in seven years. The Bank of Korea, led by its governor, Lee Seong-tae, left the overnight call rate at a five-year high of 4.5 percent. âEconomic growth has weakened,â Mr. Lee, left, said. âConsumer prices have stabilized.â The bank raised rates three times in 2006. Recent reports showing that the economy grew at the slowest pace in 18 months and that household debt fell for the first time in a year ended expectations that the central bank would raise rates in the first half of this year.
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Asian stocks briefly reached a one-month high on Tuesday with a big bank deal in South Korea helping lift sentiment, but the major currencies held steady ahead of a batch of influential U.S. data due this week.