Pakistan's central bank is widely expected to keep its key interest rate unchanged at 21% on Monday after aggressive rate hikes since April last year to tackle record-high inflation amid the nation's worst-ever economic crisis. The country's key rate has been raised by a massive 1125 basis points (bps) since April 2022 and 17 of 18 analysts surveyed said there would be no change in the key rate on Monday, while one expects a 100 bps hike. Most analysts agreed that with inflation peaking and global commodity prices coming down, there was no urgent need to hike interest rates yet again. These measures include raising taxes and removing blanket subsidies and artificial curbs on the exchange rate. For the individual poll responses, see table below:Reuters table

Source: The Nation June 09, 2023 05:19 UTC