Korea Business News Agency - NSP NEWS AGENCY.

(Seoul=NSP NEWS) = The first monetary policy meeting of the Bank of Korea (BOK) for the second quarter of this year decided to keep the base interest rate unchanged at 2.75%.

This decision was influenced by domestic concerns such as fluctuating household debt and external issues like the US-China reciprocal tariff, which has caused the unstable exchange rate between the Korean won and the US dollar.

On April 17th, the BOK’s monetary policy committee decided to maintain the interest rate at the current 2.75% level.

Following the announcement of reciprocal tariffs by the United States, the won-dollar exchange rate surged to 1,484 KRW, reaching the highest level in 16 years, since the global financial crisis in March 2009, when it hit 1,496 KRW.

After the tariff imposition was postponed, the exchange rate dropped to around 1,420 KRW.

However, with the ongoing tariff war between the US and China, the situation remains uncertain.

Domestically, the issue of household debt continues to be a concern. Due to the ease of land transaction regulations in Seoul and some parts of the metropolitan area, there are fears that household debt could skyrocket from this month onwards. There is also concern about a potential"balloon effect"in areas that are not designated as land transaction permit zones.

By Geul-sam Kwon(gulsam2049@nspna.com) and Soo-in Kang(sink606@nspna.com)

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