Armenia raises rate 50 bps but expects inflation to fall

    Armenia's central bank raised its benchmark refinancing rate by 50 basis points to 8.50 percent, saying it expects inflation to slowly decline in coming months amid slower economic growth, which will allow the central bank to loosen monetary conditions.
    The Central Bank of Armenia (CBA), which has held rates steady since September 2011, said headline inflation rose by 0.4 percent in July for an annual rate of 8.5 percent, up from 6.5 percent in June.
    "The council agreed that inflation will gradually return to target levels and will remain in the permissible variation range," the CBA said.
   The Armenian central bank targets inflation of 4.0 percent within a 1.5 percentage point band.

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