MNI BRIEF: China's March LPR Unchanged
MNI (BEIJING) - China's Loan Prime Rate remained unchanged on Thursday according to a People's Bank of China statement, in line with expectations as some economic indicators reflected a continued recovery.
The LPR was held at 3.1% for the one-year maturity and 3.6% for the five-year and over rate. Both benchmarks fell in October by 25 basis points, the largest cuts since the reform of the new LPR pricing system in 2019, following the PBOC’s 20bp reduction on its 7-day reverse repo rate in September. Thursday's decision was largely anticipated. (See MNI PBOC WATCH: LPR To Hold On Economic Recovery)
As subdued prices and weak bank loans still point to sluggish demand, policy advisors have called for more aggressive interest rate reductions later this year. (See MNI INTERVIEW: Low Inflation Gives Room For More China Easing)