China’s central bank said that inflation rate may rebound in the second half of 2009, Bloomberg reported. The People’s Bank of China (PBoC) said that while it plans to keep policies stable, China’s economy is at a "critical" point following higher-than-expected growth in the second quarter. China’s economy grew by an annualized and seasonally adjusted 14.9% in the second quarter, up from 8.5% in the first quarter, PBoC said. However, the government pledged to maintain a "moderately loose" monetary policy last week, contradicting speculation that surges in lending and asset prices might prompt Beijing to make adjustments. Most economists surveyed by Bloomberg believe that PBoC will raise interest rates next year as a recovery strengthens, but is not overly concerned by inflation at present. "For now, like central banks around the world, China’s is going to be very patient," said David Cohen, an economist with Action Economics in Singapore. "They’re not going to risk derailing a recovery by tightening too early."
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