The Philippine central bank decided on Thursday to take off-cycle action to raise the bank’s target reverse repurchase rate by 25 points to 6.50 percent and the interest rates on the overnight deposit and lending facilities to 6 percent and 7 percent, respectively.
“The Monetary Board recognized the need for this urgent monetary action to prevent supply-side price pressures from inducing additional second-round effects and further dislodging inflation expectations,” Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Eli Remolona told a news conference. Remolona said the latest baseline projections “point to an elevated inflation path over the policy horizon as upside risks continue to manifest.”—APP
