South Korea's central bank cut its benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points on Tuesday, aligning with market expectations.
The Bank of Korea (BOK) slashed the rate from 3% to 2.75%, its lowest since August 2022, in hopes of stimulating a slowing economy. The country's GDP growth in the fourth quarter missed expectations, coming in at 1.2% to mark the slowest rate of expansion since the second quarter of 2023.
The BOK also downgraded its growth outlook and now expects the country's economy to grow 1.5% in 2025, a reduction of 0.4% from its projection in November. As for inflation, the central bank maintained its estimate, expecting it to average 1.9% this year.
