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Virtually all bond experts expect BOK to keep base rate steady: Survey

Published: 25 Nov. 2025, 14:53 Updated: 25 Nov. 2025, 16:12

Bank of Korea Governor Rhee Chang-yong strikes the gavel during a Monetary Policy Committee meeting at the Bank of Korea headquarters in central Seoul on Oct. 23. [YONHAP]

An overwhelming majority of bond experts in Korea believe the Bank of Korea (BOK) will hold its policy rate steady for a fourth consecutive time in its rate-setting meeting later this week, a survey showed Tuesday.

According to a poll conducted by the Korea Financial Investment Association (Kofia) of 100 fund managers and traders at 47 financial institutions, 96 of those polled said they expected the central bank to keep the country's benchmark interest rate steady at 2.5 percent.

The BOK's monetary policy board is scheduled to hold its rate-setting meeting Thursday.

Kofia said a rise in the country's economic growth forecast and a prolonged weakening of the Korean won has strengthened the experts' outlook for a rate freeze.

Meanwhile, the bond market index for December stood at 103.2, down 8.3 points from November's 111.5. A reading above 100 means that market participants expect bond prices to rise. Bond prices move inversely to yields.

Among those surveyed, 21 percent expected bond yields to rise next month, while 28 percent projected bond yields to drop.

Regarding the foreign exchange rate, 23 percent said they expected the Korean won to fall further against the dollar in December, sharply down from the 49 percent who had anticipated further weakening of the local currency this month.

The proportion of respondents who expected the Korean won would rise against the dollar grew by 27 percentage points from a month earlier to 30 percent, according to the survey. This is attributed to the won-dollar exchange rate rising close to the psychologically significant level of 1,480 won per dollar, coupled with increasing demand for currency hedging, the Kofia said.

The local currency has remained weak in recent weeks, dipping to a seven-month low of 1,477 won against the greenback Monday.

Yonhap