WASHINGTON: Colombia’s central bank unexpectedly increased the benchmark interest rate by a half point on Friday in an effort to stem still-rising inflation even as economic growth is weakened by a drop in oil prices.
The seven-member board decided to boost the lending rate to 7 percent, surprising the majority of analysts in a Reuters survey, who had expected a 25 basis point rise. The bank expects economic growth to be between 1.5 percent and 3.2 percent this year with 2.5 percent as most probable, board director Jose Dario Uribe said.
