S.Korea expresses worry about uncertainty over Fed's rate hike speed

SEOUL, Dec. 14 (Xinhua) -- South Korea's finance ministry on Thursday expressed worry about uncertainty over the speed of the U.S. Federal Reserve's future rate increase following the Fed's rate hike overnight.

Vice Finance Minister Ko Hyoung-kwon held a meeting with vice ministerial-level officials from the financial regulator, the financial watchdog and the central bank, saying uncertainty got very big over the pace of the future U.S. interest rate hike.

Ko said market expectations for interest rate could be volatile though market fluctuation, caused by the Fed's rate hike overnight, was not big.

The benchmark KOSPI index took off a strong start, staying in positive territory after the Fed's tightened monetary policy.

The Fed raised its benchmark rate by a quarter percentage point to a range of 1.25-1.50 percent, marking the third rate hike this year. The U.S. central bank indicated three more rate increases next year.

The vice minister said that though South Korea's economy was forecast to grow 3 percent this year, risk management should be strengthened for stable growth, vowing to respond in a pre-emptive manner. Enditem