[Next week's economy] Will the base interest rate be raised for the third consecutive time? Producer prices announced

(Sejong = Yonhap News) Reporters Lee Dae-hee, Bae Young-kyung, and Chae Sae-rom = Next week (October 19-23), the Bank of Korea will decide the base interest rate. A comprehensive government audit of major economic ministries is also scheduled.

The Bank of Korea's Monetary Policy Committee (hereinafter referred to as the Monetary Policy Committee) will hold a monetary policy direction meeting on the 22nd and decide whether to adjust the base interest rate, which is currently 3.00%.

The Monetary Policy Committee previously raised the base interest rate by 0.25 percentage points (p) in consecutive July and August.

There is a prevailing opinion in the market that the Monetary Policy Committee will freeze interest rates and look at the results of consecutive increases rather than continuing to raise interest rates for three consecutive times. However, as the inflation rate is still high and real estate market instability continues, there are observations that it will give a signal that leaves open the possibility of further increases.

The Bank of Korea announces the producer price index for September on the 21st.

Producer prices rose for nine consecutive months starting in September of last year, remained flat in June, fell for the first time in 11 months in July, and then rose again last month.

On the 19th, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance and Economy Lee Hyung-il visited sites related to the housing sector among the three core social policies, including housing supply, job stability, and inclusive finance, and listened to voices from the field.

On the 21st, the export and import status for the 1st to 20th of this month will be announced. The export amount from the 1st to the 10th of this month (provisional value based on customs clearance) was $26.1 billion, an increase of 102.0% compared to the same period last year.

On the 19th, an audit of the National Assembly's Political Affairs Committee will be conducted targeting the Financial Supervisory Service. The process of introducing a single-stock leveraged exchange-traded fund (ETF) is expected to be the biggest issue during the Financial Supervisory Service's audit following the Financial Services Commission.

Lee Chan-jin, head of the Financial Supervisory Service, said about the process of introducing the product at a press conference last June, "I am personally reflecting on whether I should have lied down and blocked it in some way, and I have a lot of regrets."

It is expected that recent serial artificial intelligence (AI) hacking incidents in the financial sector will also come to the fore. The Political Affairs Committee additionally adopted the presidents of the five largest banks as witnesses for the National Assembly inspection.

In addition, this year's household debt management, real estate project financing (PF) workplace management, relocation of the Financial Supervisory Service to regional areas, and administrative reform are also considered as major policy issues.

A comprehensive national inspection will be held for the Fair Trade Commission on the 21st, the Ministry of Finance and Economy, the Financial Services Commission and the Financial Supervisory Service on the 22nd, and the Ministry of Planning and Budget and the Bank of Korea on the 23rd.

Financial Services Commission Chairman Lee Eok-won will attend the insurance industry win-win insurance business agreement signing ceremony on the 19th. The insurance industry, the Vulnerable Elderly Support Foundation, and the Senior Citizens Living Alone Support Center plan to join hands to provide integrated support to vulnerable seniors using the insurance industry's win-win fund.