State Bank of Pakistan to announce monetary policy today

KARACHI – State of Pakistan is set to announce the monetary policy rate on Monday as a meeting of the central bank’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) will be held today to discuss the policy rate for the upcoming weeks.

SBP will be announcing monetary policy since the return of the country’s new finance czar Ishaq Dar, who replaced Miftah Ismail.

Reports in local media quoting sources said SBP is likely to keep the interest rate unchanged at 15 percent for the next seven weeks in wake of soaring inflation and flood devastation.

The cash-strapped country has seen a cumulative increase of 775 basis points over the course of nearly one year from 7.25 pc in September 2021 to a record high of 15 percent in July 2022.

In its last meeting, the Monetary Policy Committee decided to keep the policy rate unchanged. The country’s economy has declined over the course of time in wake of unprecedented floods and widening current account deficits.