Households and business owners are waiting to see if Bank Negara Malaysia will trim OPR further at its Monetary Policy Committee meeting today to stimulate growth. Economists are divided on what BNM will do next while the OPR is already at a low never seen since the Global Financial Crisis in 2009.
Bloomberg data showed seven out of 17 economists are forecasting that BNM will cut OPR by 25 basis points (bps) to 1.75 percent, while four foreign research firms have said they expect an aggressive slash of the rate to 1.5 percent. The remaining six research firms are projecting BNM to maintain the OPR at 2 percent.
With the latest cut of 50bps in May, the central bank has slashed the OPR by 100bps so far this year. The interest rates are already low enough in stimulating growth so the impact of another rate cut is "unlikely to be significant", RHB Research Institute's chief Asean economist Peck Boon Soon commented.
OCBC Bank in a note yesterday wrote that BNM might opt to hold the rate now to have a better read on economic momentum and also to preserve room to act in September closer to the end of the loans' moratorium period.
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Published on July 7, 2020 5:41 PM (GMT+8)Last Updated on July 7, 2020 5:41 PM (GMT+8)
