Colombia’s Next Rate Meeting at Risk After Minister Walkout

Colombia’s finance chief’s decision to abandon the latest central bank meeting in protest of an interest rate hike approved by the board is raising questions about policymakers’ legal ability to conduct monetary policy, putting their next gathering in less than a month at risk.

German Avila walked out of Tuesday’s central bank meeting after four of the board’s seven members backed a 100-basis-point rate increase that President Gustavo Petro has described as “suicidal.”