The Bank of Korea maintained the key rate at one-point-five percent on Thursday as uncertainties loom at home and abroad. 

It was the third freeze since the central bank hiked the rate by a quarter of a percentage point in November. 

In a statement following the monetary policy meeting, the bank said consumer price growth this year is expected to fall short of its January forecast of one-point-seven percent, narrowing the likelihood of a rate increase in the first half of the year. 

The bank kept its growth forecast for the year at three percent, but U.S.-China trade tensions remain a concern while employment conditions are dismal. The unemployment rate reached a 17-year high for the month of March with the number of jobs growing by a feeble 112-thousand last month.