SEOUL - Bank of Korea (BOK), South Korea's central bank, froze its benchmark interest rate at 3 percent on Thursday, keeping the policy rate untouched for two straight months after cutting the 7-day repo rate by 25 basis points (bps) in July.

The BOK's decision was unexpected as most experts predicted the rate cut, citing worsening economic conditions and low headline inflation.

The central bank was assessed to take cautious stance against further monetary easing as policy actions by major economies triggered risk-on mode in the global financial market.