OSLO, June 17 (Reuters) - Norway’s central bank kept its key policy interest rate unchanged at a record-low 0.0% on Thursday, as expected, and said a hike will most likely follow in September as the economy recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic. Norges Bank has long warned of a hike this year. Economists polled by Reuters had been almost evenly split over whether the monetary policy-makers would point to September or December as the most probable timing of a rise. (Reporting by Terje Solsvik and Victoria Klesty; editing by Gwladys Fouche) Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.