BRASILIA (Reuters) -Brazil’s planning and budget minister, Simone Tebet, said on Tuesday that the country’s central bank is causing “unnecessary noise” by publishing varying comments regarding its plans for the benchmark interest rate.
Last week, the country’s central bank maintained its benchmark interest rate at 13.75% for the seventh consecutive time, but took a more dovish tone on its future steps in a statement by excluding the possibility of upcoming rate hikes.
However, in its minutes published earlier on Tuesday, the bank said that a majority of its policymakers see a possibility of a “parsimonious” rate cut at its next meeting in August, provided that a more benign inflation scenario consolidates.
According to Tebet, this would be the fourth time that the minutes soften the statement with a milder tone.
(Reporting by Victor Borges; Writing by Carolina Pulice; Editing by Leslie Adler)