The Bank of Korea raised its benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points to 3% on Thursday, broadly in line with market expectations.
The Monetary Policy Board decided to lift the base interest rate from its previous level of 2.75% as inflation is projected to exceed its target level "for a considerable period."
The move follows the BOK's rate hike in July, which marked its first increase in over three years.
Automotive production in Thailand rose 6.12% in July to 117,383 units, driven by the production of electric passenger cars, which shot up 271% to 13,422 units, media reports said on Tuesday, quoting data from the Federation of Thai Industries.The growth in July follows a year-on-year fall of 7.55% in June.Domestic car sales rose 20.07% in July compared to a growth of 17.3% in June, while exports in July grew 2.4% from a drop of 7.45% seen in the preceding month, according to the FTI.(Market Chatter news is derived from conversations with market professionals globally. This information is believed to be from reliable sources but may include rumor and speculation. Accuracy is not guaranteed.)
Total new residential mortgage lending in New Zealand fell to NZ$7.85 billion in July from NZ$8.45 billion in June, according to data from the Reserve Bank of New Zealand released on Wednesday.Residential mortgage lending to first home buyers fell to NZ$1.58 billion in July from NZ$1.6 billion in the previous month. Lending to other owner-occupiers decreased to NZ$4.68 billion from NZ$5.1 billion.Residential mortgage lending to investors fell to NZ$1.48 billion from NZ$1.65 billion, while that for business purposes increased to NZ$109 million from NZ$95 million.Total new residential lending at a loan-to-valuation ratio above 80% came in at NZ$1.26 billion in July for all borrower types, down from NZ$1.27 billion in June.Residential mortgage lending, where the loan-to-valuation ratio is equal to or below 80%, was NZ$6.59 billion for all borrower types, down from NZ$7.18 billion in the previous month.
The six-month annualized growth rate in the Westpac-Melbourne Institute Leading Index rose to negative 0.2% in July from negative 0.4% in June, showing that the momentum is running below trend but is not particularly weak, according to a report released Wednesday.The index indicates the expected pace of economic activity in comparison to the trend for the next three to nine months.The July update is the seventh consecutive below-trend read on the leading index growth rate, but momentum has slightly improved since mid-year, said Matthew Hassan, Westpac's Head of Australian Macro-forecasting.Gross domestic product growth is expected to remain positive in the upcoming quarters, although per capita growth may run close to flat.The sub-trend leading index growth signal is mainly driven by financial conditions and the labor market, while other components show mixed contributions, he said.The Reserve Bank is anticipated to leave the cash rate unchanged, but it is prepared to lift again if high inflation is showing signs of persistence, Hassan added.