哈萨克斯坦:科威特国家上调Refinancing Rate 50 BPS To 8.5%

National Bank of Kazakhstanhiked the refinancing rate by 50 basis points to 8.5%. The decision will be effective beginning April 1. As we reported, inflation has accelerated in recent months, reaching 8.7% year-on-year and 1.5% month-on-month in February.

Earlier, NBK promised it will reconsider the refinancing rate quarterly in order to fight off inflation. In 2005, it raised the rate twice, each time by 25bps. The bank rationed the action by its forecasts that inflow of foreign capital and growth of crediting will stay high in coming months. According to government, CPI inflation will be 7.3% y/y this year compared to 7.6% y/y in 2006. As we reported, government and NBK promised to intensify efforts to tame inflation.

IntelliNewsComment:The move indicates that NBK is ready to act within its duties to keep inflation in the desired range. But in our view the move will have limited results as the financial sector in Kazakhstan is underdeveloped. Several other measures proposed by authorities also seem questionable. For greater details, please refer to our article inIntelliNewsCentral Asia This Weekdated March 13, "Kazakh Government vs. Rising Inflation - Methods, Prospects Mixed".