BELGRADE: The Serbian central bank is seen keeping its borrowing costs on hold at 3pc this week as the dinar currency remains strong, growth stable and inflation increasing slightly, but still within target range, a Reuters poll showed on Tuesday.
Twelve out of 13 analysts and traders polled forecast the bank's policymakers would leave the benchmark interest rate unchanged when they meet on Thursday.
The central bank kept rates unchanged in May, saying the slowdown of global economic growth and inflation is influencing the normalisation of monetary policies of key players such as the US Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank.
The bank last cut rates in April 2018, by 25 basis points.
The Serbian economy grew 2.5pc in the first quarter of 2019. According to estimates by the International Monetary Fund, the central bank and the government, it is set to grow 3.5pc this year, down from 4.4pc in 2018.
The IMF last month praised Serbia's robust economic performance and urged the Balkan country to use fiscal revenues for capital spending.
Serbia's inflation increased to 3.1pc in April, from 2.8 percent a month earlier. It is still well inside the central bank's target of 3 percent, give or take 1.5 percentage points.
The statistics office will announce May inflation data on June 12.
The dinar remained strong against the euro in April and May and the central bank, which keeps the currency in a managed float, has this year purchased 380 million euros to stem its gains on the currency market.
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