Czech central bankers decided to hold the key rate at 0.75% by a split vote in its latest board meeting, the minutes of the meeting showed on Friday.
While four members including Governor Miroslav Singer voted to maintain the two-week repo rate on February 3, three members voted against the proposition, the minutes said. Policy makers Robert Holman, Kamil Janacek and Eva Zamrazilova sought a quarter point hike.
Holman, whose term expires this week will be replaced by Lubomir Lizal on February 13.
"It was repeatedly said that a premature rate increase might have larger negative impact on the economy than a delayed increase," the minutes showed. The board agreed that the risks associated with the February forecast were significant and were pointed in both directions.
The central bank's previous policy change was in May, when the bank rate was lowered by a quarter-percentage point from 1%.
In its Inflation Report, the central bank said inflation will be close to the 2% target in 2011 and 2012. Today, the bank said the inflation will reach 2% target in the first quarter of 2012 before rising to 2.1% in the second quarter. According to CNB, the economy will expand 1.6% this year and by 3% in 2012.
Further, the bank sees the public sector deficit at 4.3% of GDP this year and at 4.2% in 2012. At the same time, public debt is forecast to rise to 44% next year from an estimated 41.9% in 2011.
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June 12, 2026 17:14 ET Major central bank action was the focus this week in economic news. The European Central Bank became the first major central bank to move in response to the rising inflationary pressures in the backdrop of the conflict in the Middle East. In North America, the U.S. inflation and trade data as well as Canada’s central bank decision gained attention. The Chinese trade data was the main news in Asia.