MANILA, Feb. 15 -- The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) kept policy rates steady for the third consecutive meeting, noting that while inflation conditions already improved, upside risks still remained.

In a briefing on Thursday, BSP Senior Assistant Governor Iluminada Sicat said the Monetary Board of the BSP, at its meeting on Wednesday, kept the BSP's target reverse repurchase (RRP) rate unchanged at 6.5 percent.

The interest rates on the overnight deposit and lending facilities were kept at 6 percent and 7 percent, respectively.

"The overall outlook for inflation remains broadly unchanged," Sicat said.

The latest baseline forecast showed that inflation will likely settle at 3.6 percent this year, slightly lower than the 3.7 percent...