Bank of Korea Governor: No Rate Cut Needed Now, AI Boom’s Effect on Neutral Rate Unclear

The Governor's caution is notable because it treats the AI boom as a possible structural force rather than a cyclical tailwind: if AI investment genuinely lifts the neutral rate, the room for easing narrows regardless of near-term energy-driven inflation. That reframes Korean policy as a test case for economies squeezed between a tech-led growth impulse and an oil shock, with the central bank explicitly declining to resolve the ambiguity. The open question is whether the AI-driven offset proves durable enough to keep the policy stance on hold, or whether the energy drag reasserts itself first.