SBP to unveil bimonthly monetary policy today  

The State Bank of Pakistan will unveil its bi-monthly monetary policy today as the country navigates its way through slow economic activity and inflation against a backdrop of rising second wave coronavirus infections.

According to the details, SBP kept the policy rate unchanged at 7 percent at its last review meeting held in September.

In response to the COVID-19 crisis and with a view to supporting the economic growth, the central bank has reduced interest rates by 625 basis points to 7 percent in the easing cycle from March to June 2020.

At present, the real interest rate (the benchmark interest rate minus inflation reading) is around 1pc negative.

Earlier the Central Bank released a review of the performance of the banking sector for the first half of 2020.

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The review comprehensively covers the performance and health of the banking sector for the period January-June 2020 (first half of 2020), while the coronavirus outbreak resulted in a modest 7.8% increase in banking assets during the first half of the year.

The sharp rise in investments has been fueled by an increase in funding deposits, which reflects growth.

According to the report, the level of debt reduction could have been much higher without the support of the SBP, but the policy measures of the SBP have increased capital protection and lending capacity.