BOK holds key rate steady to shore up weak currency

Korea's central bank kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged Thursday, despite sluggish growth, in an effort to stabilize the local currency amid uncertainties regarding the United States' sweeping tariff scheme. The monetary policy committee of the Bank of Korea (BOK) held its key rate unchanged at 2.75 percent during a rate-setting meeting in Seoul. The decision follows a quarter-percentage-point rate cut at the previous meeting in February, which marked the third reduction since October 2024, when the BOK began its monetary easing cycle for the first time since August 2021. Thursday's decision underscored the BOK's focus on maintaining financial stability, even as it grapples with a trade-off between supporting economic growth and safeguarding markets. Volatility increased in the financial and foreign exchange markets recently due mainly to the Donald Trump administration's unpredictable tariff policies. Earlier this month, the local currency fell to as low as 1,484.1 won against the U.S. dollar, the lowest level in about 16 years, after the U.S. announced "reciprocal" tariffs that