(For a Reuters poll on rate expectations, see)
Aug 11 (Reuters) - South Korea's central bank looks certain to hold interest rates steady for a sixth consecutive month at a record-low 2.0 percent on Tuesday, as the economy shows signs of incipient recovery and inflation stays low.
The central bank has kept rates unchanged since March after six cuts totalling 3.25 percentage points between October last year and February this year to shield Asia's fourth-largest economy from the fallout of the global financial and economic crisis.
Following are key comments that South Korean officials have made on the country's economy and monetary policy since the Bank of Korea's previous interest rate meeting on July 9:
PRESIDENT SPOKESMAN LEE DONG-KWAN, after a weekly cabinet meeting on July 30:
'(Top policymakers) agreed that it was premature to consider an exit strategy. (They agreed that) there is always a need to prepare an exit strategy but this is not time to debate it publicly.'
VICE FINANCE MINISTER HUR KYUNG-WOOK, in a radio interview on July 30:
'It is certainty premature to adopt an exit strategy with the prospects for the global economy remaining largely uncertain. We are all aware of the troubles that a hasty exit from loose policy brought about during the Great Depression in the United States and during the 1990s in Japan.'
PRESIDENT LEE MYUNG-BAK, in a radio interview on July 27:
'Some say it is time to prepare for the future after a crisis and mention exit plans. But I think such talk is premature.'
FINANCIAL SERVICES COMMISSION CHAIRMAN CHIN DONG-SOO, in a statement on July 20:
'Considering the global economic situation and local economic conditions, it is not desirable to shift the currency policy stance. But we need fine-tuning to complement the effectiveness of macro policies in the financial sector while closely watching market conditions.'
BANK OF KOREA GOVERNOR LEE SEONG-TAE, in a statement on July 17:
'We need to watch out for the possibility that a rise in home-backed loans causes instability in housing prices.'
FINANCIAL SERVICES COMMISSION CHIN DONG-WOO, in a speech for a business forum on July 10:
'The government plans to maintani the current (loose) policy stance for the time being but needs to consider ways to adjust some of the policies in line with the improved financial market conditions.'
(Reporting by Seo Eun-kyung; Editing by Jonathan Hopfner) ((eunkyung.seo@thomsonreuters.com;+822 3704 5648; Reuters Messaging:eunkyung.seo.reuters.com@reuters.net)) Keywords: KOREA ECONOMY/RATES (If you have a query or comment on this story, send an email to news.feedback.asia@thomsonreuters.com) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2009. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
Aug 11 (Reuters) - South Korea's central bank looks certain to hold interest rates steady for a sixth consecutive month at a record-low 2.0 percent on Tuesday, as the economy shows signs of incipient recovery and inflation stays low.
The central bank has kept rates unchanged since March after six cuts totalling 3.25 percentage points between October last year and February this year to shield Asia's fourth-largest economy from the fallout of the global financial and economic crisis.
Following are key comments that South Korean officials have made on the country's economy and monetary policy since the Bank of Korea's previous interest rate meeting on July 9:
PRESIDENT SPOKESMAN LEE DONG-KWAN, after a weekly cabinet meeting on July 30:
'(Top policymakers) agreed that it was premature to consider an exit strategy. (They agreed that) there is always a need to prepare an exit strategy but this is not time to debate it publicly.'
VICE FINANCE MINISTER HUR KYUNG-WOOK, in a radio interview on July 30:
'It is certainty premature to adopt an exit strategy with the prospects for the global economy remaining largely uncertain. We are all aware of the troubles that a hasty exit from loose policy brought about during the Great Depression in the United States and during the 1990s in Japan.'
PRESIDENT LEE MYUNG-BAK, in a radio interview on July 27:
'Some say it is time to prepare for the future after a crisis and mention exit plans. But I think such talk is premature.'
FINANCIAL SERVICES COMMISSION CHAIRMAN CHIN DONG-SOO, in a statement on July 20:
'Considering the global economic situation and local economic conditions, it is not desirable to shift the currency policy stance. But we need fine-tuning to complement the effectiveness of macro policies in the financial sector while closely watching market conditions.'
BANK OF KOREA GOVERNOR LEE SEONG-TAE, in a statement on July 17:
'We need to watch out for the possibility that a rise in home-backed loans causes instability in housing prices.'
FINANCIAL SERVICES COMMISSION CHIN DONG-WOO, in a speech for a business forum on July 10:
'The government plans to maintani the current (loose) policy stance for the time being but needs to consider ways to adjust some of the policies in line with the improved financial market conditions.'
(Reporting by Seo Eun-kyung; Editing by Jonathan Hopfner) ((eunkyung.seo@thomsonreuters.com;+822 3704 5648; Reuters Messaging:eunkyung.seo.reuters.com@reuters.net)) Keywords: KOREA ECONOMY/RATES (If you have a query or comment on this story, send an email to news.feedback.asia@thomsonreuters.com) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2009. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.