Focus Taiwan
Date: 2019/03/02
By: Pan Tzu-yu and Frances Huang 

Taipei, March 2 (CNA) Taiwan’s central bank is expected to maintain its current interest rates when it holds its quarterly policymaking meeting on March 21, economists said Saturday.

Although the domestic economy has been showing signs of a slowdown, it does not warrant an interest rate cut anytime soon, two local economists said.

At its last quarterly policymaking meeting in December 2018, the central bank kept the discount interest rates at 1.375 percent, the rate on accommodations with collateral at 1.750 percent, and the rate on accommodations without collateral at 3.625 percent, for the 10th consecutive quarter.

Norman Yin (殷乃平), a professor in the Department of Money and Banking at National Chengchi University, said the domestic economy is unlikely to plunge anytime soon, despite a slowdown, so it is not necessary for the central bank to loosen its monetary policy right now to stimulate the economy.    [FULL  STORY]