The chief of South Korea's central bank said Friday it is not appropriate to keep the country's key interest rate frozen at a record low for a long-term period.
"I do not think keeping the rate at a record low for a long time is desirable," Bank of Korea (BOK) Governor Lee Seong-tae said at a parliamentary audit session.
The BOK slashed the key interest rate by a total of 3.25 percentage points between October last year and February, drawing the rate down to an all-time low of 2 percent, as part of its measure to tackle the global financial crisis.
With emerging signs of an economic recovery, the BOK, led by its chief, has been hinting at a possible rate hike, although the government has been pushing for a continued monetary easing policy.
Earlier in September, the BOK chief said that the bank may raise the rate if housing prices continue to rise.
However, when asked about the trend of the housing market in the audit, Lee said that the price has been stabilizing since last September, vowing to keep a close observation on the move.
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