KARACHI: Amid the first International Monetary Fund (IMF) review of a $7 billion bailout during the period of the lowest inflation in over ten years, the majority of analysts anticipate that the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) would decrease interest rates for the seventh consecutive time on Monday.
As it pursues the economic reforms required by the IMF program, the financially challenged South Asian country may be able to access an additional funding tranche if the IMF review is authorized prior to the June budget announcement.
One of the most aggressive easing cycles among developing economies, the central bank’s easing cycle comes after a six-month period of 1,000 basis point (bps) rate decreases that brought the benchmark rate down from a record high of 22% in June to 12%.
