The Central Bank of Trinidad & Tobago kept its repo rate unchanged at 3.00%. The Bank said: “While there are signs that credit demand may be increasing, the basis for a sustained economic recovery is still to be established.” The Bank also noted “The increase in the headline inflation rate was mainly attributable to higher food prices. Core inflation, which excludes the impact of food prices, has been relatively well contained for most of 2011, indicative of the overall sluggish demand conditions in the economy.”
Previously the Bank had cut the interest rate by 25 basis points in March, and July this year. Trinidad & Tobago reported headline inflation of 5.7% in November, compared to 3.7% in October, 2.5% in September, to 0.6% in August, but down from 12.5% in January 2011, and 13.4% in December last year. Trinidad & Tobago’s currency, the Trinidad & Tobago Dollar (TTD), has traded in a very tight range against the US dollar this year; the USDTTD rate was last recorded at 6.39. The central bank will next review interest rates on the 27th of January 2012.
