KARACHI/ISLAMABAD: The State Bank of Pakistan on Tuesday slashed the interest rate by 1.5%, taking it down to 11%, in a bid to facilitate exporters and businesses who seek loans from commercial banks to run operations.
"The global economy has been hit hard by the coronavirus, with the pandemic causing several businesses, including restaurants, hotels, airlines and manufacturing businesses to record losses in billions," the SBP said in a press release.
In a tweet, it said: "MPC has decided to cut the policy rate by a further 150 basis points to 11 percent."
"It noted considerable uncertainty about how the Coronavirus outbreak would impact the global economy and Pakistan," it added.
Earlier, the SBP had said it introduced various policy measures to protect the public given the looming potential economic impact amid the COVID19 outbreak.
It said it had created a dedicated page for the new measures.