SINGAPORE’S central bank is widely expected to stand pat for the rest of the year, following Friday’s (Apr 14) surprise decision to end its hiking cycle after 18 months amid a likely “deeper than anticipated” economic slowdown.

“Growth momentum has slowed significantly while inflation has peaked, and (is) likely to moderate going forward,” said DBS senior economist Irvin Seah. “The changing risk dynamics between growth and inflation has prompted the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) to rebalance its exchange-rate policy.”

Concurring, Maybank economists Chua Hak Bin and Lee Ju Ye said that “concerns of a growth slowdown seem to be outweighing inflation”, despite the elevated core inflation.