SEOUL, Feb. 2 (Reuters) – South Korea’s monetary policy board has warned of emerging risks of financial imbalances as a result of rising asset prices over property and stock markets and a sharp rise in debt, minutes of the central bank’s January meeting showed Tuesday. .
In January, the Bank of Korea maintained its stable base at a historically low level of 0.5% as the policy focus shifted from an urgent need to support economic recovery to escalating risks. growth from a hot stock market rally and growing housing debt.
The minutes of the last meeting showed that the majority of the seven board members were concerned about the red-hot real estate market as well as rising stock prices, particularly with housing and market revenues. work is still slow.
“Given the recent sharp rise in asset prices, there is a good chance that the risk of financial imbalances is accumulating,” said the seven-member board policyholder.
The Kospi benchmark has more than doubled from last year’s low levels, while Seoul’s house price is at an all-time high despite several measures of property cooling.
None of the board members immediately urged any policy action, although one said that easy monetary policies must be maintained at the moment “in order to strengthen a reversal of the economy. ”
Only disagreements are highlighted in the minutes. (Reporting by Cynthia Kim Edited by Shri Navaratnam)