Ukraine"s central bank governor Kyrylo Shevchenko described himself as "hawkish" on Thursday and would not rule out raising rates further if inflation in the country continued to spike. The bank raised its main interest rate for the fifth time this year on Thursday taking it to 9% from 8.5%. read more A rise in food and energy prices, but also a tumble in the country"s currency as Russia has amassed troops near Ukraine"s border, has seen inflation spike to 11%, the highest level since 2018 and more than double the central bank"s near 5% target. "We"re still quite hawkish so we will not exclude further increases" if inflation spikes further, Shevchenko said at a Ukrainian investment conference in London. Asked if he had an upper limit to how high rates could be hiked in future, Shevchenko said "for sure not now." Reporting by Elizabeth Howcroft Editing by Mark Heinrich Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.