For the past few years Asian central bankers have faced a quandary — keep rates at record lows and stoke a potentially dangerous credit boom, or lift them and invite hot money inflows and currency appreciation.
Some were forced to make a choice in the midst of crisis. India and Indonesia both introduced emergency policy measures in late 2013 to prevent a currency run as expectations of higher US rates were brought forward and money flowed out of both economies.
But with economic growth now slipping across the region and rapidly falling oil prices pushing inflation lower, most Asian policy makers are now firmly leaning towards looser monetary policy.