MNI: Norges Bank Leaves Key Rate Unchanged At 1.00% - Text

     LONDON (MNI) - The Norges Bank kept its key policy rate unchanged at 1.00%

following its meeting Thursday.

     The full text of the Norges Bank statement follows.

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     Policy rate unchanged at 1.0 percent 

     Norges Bank's Executive Board has decided to keep the policy rate unchanged

at 1.0 percent.

     In Monetary Policy Report 1/19, which was published on 21 March 2019, the

Executive Board's assessment was that capacity utilisation in the Norwegian

economy was slightly above a normal level. Underlying inflation was a little

higher than the 2 percent inflation target. The policy rate was raised by 0.25

percentage point to 1.0 percent in March. The Executive Board's assessment of

the outlook and balance of risks suggested that the policy rate would most

likely be raised in the course of the next half-year.

     The outlook and balance of risks continues to imply a gradual increase in

the policy rate. The uncertainty surrounding global developments persists. In

Norway, capacity utilisation appears to be rising broadly as expected, while

inflation has been slightly higher than projected. Overall, new information

indicates that the outlook for the policy rate for the period ahead is little

changed since the March Report.

     The Executive Board decided to keep the policy rate unchanged at 1.0

percent.

     "The Executive Board's current assessment of the outlook and balance of

risks suggests that the policy rate will most likely be raised in June", says

Governor Oystein Olsen.

--MNI London Bureau; tel: +44 203-586-2225; email: les.commons@marketnews.com

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