Economics
Chile Central Bank Floats Option of Faster Hikes If Needed
- Annual inflation is high and will rise even further: minutes
- Policy makers have raised rates 650 basis points since July
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Chile’s central bank said it opted for an interest rate hike of 1.5 percentage points at its last meeting -- less than many had expected -- because it left them in a better position to speed up increases if necessary in future.
Bank board members considered a borrowing cost hike of 125-, 150- or 175-basis points at the March 29 meeting, according to the minutes published on Wednesday. Policy makers agreed that rates should be raised at a “significant pace” given high annual inflation.