Japan’s Finance Minister Signals Alignment With BOJ as Rate Hike Speculation Grows 
Asian Markets Stabilize as Wall Street Rebounds and Rate Concerns Ease 
China Urged to Prioritize Economy Over Territorial Ambitions, Says Taiwan’s President Lai 
European Oil & Gas Stocks Face 2026 With Cautious Outlook Amid Valuation Pressure 
RBNZ Cuts Interest Rates Again as Inflation Cools and Recovery Remains Fragile 
RBA Reassesses Pricing Behaviors and Policy Impact Amid Inflation Pressures 
Fed Officials Split as Powell Weighs December Interest Rate Cut 
BOJ Governor Ueda Highlights Uncertainty Over Future Interest Rate Hikes 
Gold Prices Edge Higher as Markets Await Key U.S. PCE Inflation Data 
Dollar Holds Steady as Markets Shift Focus to 2026 Rate Cut Expectations 
The Bank of Korea (BoK) is expected to remain on hold at the monetary policy meeting scheduled to be held next week, with headline inflation making a gradual and slow rise. Also, consumer prices in the country are expected to reach the central bank’s target band in the next year.
The BoK will likely leave its 7-day repo rate unchanged at 1.25 percent on Thursday December 15, at 9:00 SGT. With headline inflation slowly rising, 2017 average inflation is expected to reach the BoK’s lower limit of its 1.5-2.5 percent target range, ANZ reported.
Also, the National Assembly has voted in favor of President Park Geun-hye’s impeachment today, adding political uncertainty in the economy, which shall aloof any such policy changes for the time being.
Meanwhile, China’s various activity indicators are likely to have been stable in November, while monetary indicators should be consistent with the government’s policy of gradual deleveraging.
