South Africa Holds Rates, Warns of Hikes If Iran War Drags

The South African Reserve Bank held interest rates steady and warned that policy tightening may be warranted if the Iran war drags on, impacting oil prices.

The five-member monetary policy committee kept the benchmark rate at 6.75%, Governor Lesetja Kganyago told reporters in Pretoria on Thursday. That matched the forecast of all 15 economists in a Bloomberg survey. The decision was unanimous, as predicted in a separate Bloomberg poll.