PRAGUE, Czech Republic, Aug. 10 (UPI) -- Czech financial markets braced for further interest rate hikes Tuesday after minutes from a July central bank meeting suggested a new hike may be imminent.
Minutes from the central bank's July 29 monetary policy meeting showed the central bank's decision to hold interest rates steady was carried by just four votes to three. Three opposing central bank board members had argued for a 25 basis point rate hike.
The news came hard on the heels of consumer price data out Monday which put the Czech Republic's year-on-year inflation rate at a two year high of 3.2 percent.
In June, the central bank moved interest rates up by 25 basis points from a record low level of 2 percent.
Taken together, analysts said Tuesday, the minutes from the last monetary policy meeting and the latest inflation data made an interest rate hike almost certain in the near future.
Most market players say the next move could come on Aug. 26.
