Still in hawkish mode (Apr 08)

Emerging Europe Central Bank Watch 1 Apr. 2008 EMERGING EUROPE CENTRAL BANK WATCH Policymakers across the region remain in hawkish mode. A sharp spike in wage growth is likely to prompt another 50bps hike in Hungary this month, while the Central Bank of Turkey looks set to raise interest rates by as much as 100bps over the coming months as inflation continues to rise. Elsewhere, we expect rates to remain on hold in Poland this month following the softer tone of the recent data, but this is only likely to be a temporary pause in the current tightening cycle – we think interest rates will be hiked again in May.