JERUSALEM, Feb 22 (Reuters) - Israeli Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday instructed lawmakers from his
Likud party to stop interfering with and speaking out against
Bank of Israel Governor Amir Yaron and his interest rate
policies.
Netanyahu's rebuke, made public by a party spokesperson,
came after his foreign minister criticized Bank of Israel
interest rates hikes and other lawmakers voiced disapproval with
Yaron for the rate hikes that have harmed mortgage holders.
Yaron has taken a hard line in battling inflation, which hit
a new 14-year high of 5.4% in January. The central bank raised
interest rates by half a percentage point at a policy meeting on
Monday to 4.25%, its eighth hike since last April.
The governor has also warned lawmakers who have been pushing
for judicial changes that could weaken the Supreme Court that
institutional independence was vital for Israel's sovereign
credit rating.
"Prime Minister Netanyahu ordered Knesset members of Likud
to stop interfering and speaking on the issue of the governor,"
said a Likud spokesperson. "The independence of the Bank of
Israel is a central pillar of the economic policy led by the
Prime Minister for two decades and nothing will change that."
(Reporting by Ari Rabinovitch
Editing by Steven Scheer)
Messaging: ari.rabinovitch@thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))
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