The Philippine central bank maintained its benchmark interest rate steady as it expects the economy to continue to recover from the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas decided on Wednesday to keep its benchmark overnight borrowing rate at 2.00% and its corresponding lending rate at 2.50%.
All six economists polled by The Wall Street Journal had projected the central bank would stand pat on its policy.
Some economists have said the central bank could cut the rate further once inflation moderates later this year.
First-quarter gross domestic product rose 0.3% from the previous quarter, though it fell 4.2% from a year earlier.
The Philippines’ consumer-price index in April rose 4.5% from a year earlier, above the central bank’s target inflation range of 2%-4%.