State Bank Keeps Interest Rate Unchanged at 10.5%

Karachi: The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has announced its latest monetary policy, keeping the policy interest rate unchanged at 10.5 percent.

Governor State Bank Jameel Ahmad, while announcing the policy, said that the interest rate will remain at 10.5 percent for the next two months. He noted that exports are declining while imports are increasing, and inflation is expected to remain around 7.4 percent, although it may rise to a higher level in June.

The governor added that government policies have contributed to a reduction in imports, while foreign exchange reserves are showing an upward trend.

He also announced a one percent reduction in the rate at which banks are required to deposit cash reserves, bringing it down to 5 percent.

It is worth recalling that the State Bank had cut the policy rate by 50 basis points on December 15, reducing it from 11 percent to 10.5 percent.