Kuwait sees interest rates as 'suitable'

Kuwaiti inflation is expected to be between 5 and 6 percent this year, the Gulf Arab state's central bank governor said on Sunday, adding interest rates are at a 'suitable' level. Kuwait's annual inflation eased to 5.2 percent in January from a nearly two-year high.
Price pressure rose in Kuwait last year, led by food costs, pushing inflation to 6.0 percent in December, the highest rate in the oil exporting Gulf.
"We expect inflation in Kuwait in 2011 to reach 5 to 6 percent," Central Bank Governor Sheikh Salem Abdul-Aziz al-Sabah told a news conference.
Sabah also said the OPEC member's 2011 nominal gross domestic product (GDP) was expected to be 8.3 percent, after an expected 17.3 percent in 2010, based on IMF forecasts.