BSP keeps policy rates unchanged

December 13, 2018

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP)'s policy-making body on Thursday kept policy rates steady at 4.75 percent. "The MB (Monetary Board) noted that latest inflation forecasts show a lower path over the policy horizon with inflation settling with target band of three percent, plus-minus one percentage point for 2019-2020,'' said the BSP in a statement. The inflation rate soared to a nine-year high of 6.7 percent in September, stayed the same in October before easing to six percent in November. "Recent headline inflation reading indicates signs of receding price pressures as constraints on good supply continued to ease with implementation of various non-monetary measures," it added. "Inflation expectations have also steadied given the decline in international crude oil prices and the stabilization of the peso," the central bank added. The central bank said " risks to the inflation outlook have become more evenly balanced for 2019 and leans toward the downside for 2020 amid a more uncertain global economic environment, which could further mitigate upward pressures from commodity prices in the coming months." DMS