Economists mixed on MAS October policy decision after central bank stands pat in July

[SINGAPORE] Private-sector economists are divided on how the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) will move on monetary policy in October, after it decided to keep settings unchanged in July – which in itself had come as a surprise to some economists.

The Republic’s central bank at Wednesday’s (Jul 30) quarterly policy meeting chose to maintain the prevailing rate of appreciation of the Singapore dollar nominal effective exchange rate (S$NEER) policy band, with no change to its width and the level at which it is centred.

This came after easing in January and April, when MAS reduced the policy slope slightly. Noting these two moves, the central bank said that it is now “in an appropriate position to respond to risks to medium-term price stability”.