{"id":8564,"date":"2025-07-25T12:07:33","date_gmt":"2025-07-25T07:07:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pakjazbo.com\/?p=8564"},"modified":"2025-07-25T12:07:35","modified_gmt":"2025-07-25T07:07:35","slug":"state-bank-likely-to-cut-interest-rate-to-10-10-5-from-july-31-policy-committee-calendar-announced","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pakjazbo.com\/?p=8564","title":{"rendered":"State Bank Likely to Cut Interest Rate to 10\u201310.5% from July 31; Policy Committee Calendar Announced"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Islamabad:<\/strong> After a prolonged period of high interest rates, Pakistan may finally witness a reduction in the policy rate, with expectations pointing towards a cut bringing the benchmark interest rate to between 10% and 10.5%<\/strong> starting July 31, 2025<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to official sources, the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC)<\/strong> of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP)<\/strong>, chaired by Governor Jameel Ahmed<\/strong>, will convene on Wednesday, July 31<\/strong>, to review the country’s economic indicators and decide the new policy rate. This will be the first monetary policy decision of the fiscal year 2025\u201326<\/strong>, and one that may signal the start of an easing cycle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Expected Rate Cut After Prolonged Tight Monetary Stance<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Economists anticipate that the SBP may reduce the policy rate by 100 to 150 basis points<\/strong>, a significant move given the historically tight monetary policy over the last two years. However, many experts also expect the MPC to act cautiously<\/strong>, possibly opting for a gradual cut of 50 to 100 basis points<\/strong>, bringing the rate down from the current 11% to a range between 10.0% and 10.5%<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This anticipated shift reflects easing inflationary pressures<\/strong>, stabilization of the exchange rate, and a relatively improved economic outlook<\/strong> following a series of structural reforms and ongoing engagements with the International Monetary Fund (IMF)<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

State Bank Releases Full-Year MPC Meeting Schedule for FY 2025\u201326<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

In a move to enhance institutional transparency<\/strong> and build stakeholder confidence<\/strong> in Pakistan\u2019s monetary framework, the SBP has also released the advance calendar<\/strong> for all upcoming Monetary Policy Committee meetings<\/strong> for the entire fiscal year 2025\u201326<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As per the schedule, the MPC will hold eight meetings<\/strong> during the financial year. The confirmed dates are:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  1. Wednesday, July 31, 2025<\/strong> \u2013 First MPC meeting of FY 2025\u201326<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. Monday, September 15, 2025<\/strong> \u2013 Second meeting<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. Monday, October 27, 2025<\/strong> \u2013 Third meeting<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  4. Monday, December 15, 2025<\/strong> \u2013 Fourth meeting<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  5. Monday, January 26, 2026<\/strong> \u2013 Fifth meeting<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  6. Monday, March 9, 2026<\/strong> \u2013 Sixth meeting<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  7. Monday, April 27, 2026<\/strong> \u2013 Seventh meeting<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  8. Monday, June 15, 2026<\/strong> \u2013 Eighth and final meeting of the fiscal year<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    The SBP clarified that in case of unforeseen economic or political developments<\/strong>, any of these meetings may be rescheduled, and a revised date will be announced accordingly. A new advance calendar for FY 2026\u201327<\/strong> is expected to be published in July 2026<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Why the Rate Cut Matters<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    A reduction in the policy rate<\/strong> will have widespread economic implications:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      \n
    • Lower Borrowing Costs<\/strong>: It will reduce the cost of credit for businesses and consumers, potentially boosting private investment and consumption<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Encouragement for Industrial Activity<\/strong>: Especially for small and medium enterprises (SMEs)<\/strong>, a lower rate could provide relief and support recovery after years of high financing costs.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Impact on Inflation and Currency<\/strong>: While the rate cut may stimulate demand, the central bank will need to monitor whether this translates into higher inflation<\/strong> or pressure on the rupee<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

      Economists have urged the central bank to balance price stability<\/strong> with growth stimulation<\/strong>, especially as Pakistan looks to attract FDI<\/strong>, control the fiscal deficit<\/strong>, and boost industrial exports<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Global and Domestic Influences on Policy<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

      The decision will also be influenced by international economic trends<\/strong>, including the U.S. Federal Reserve\u2019s policy stance<\/strong>, global oil prices, and geopolitical events. On the domestic front, the government\u2019s budgetary commitments<\/strong>, IMF conditionalities<\/strong>, and the performance of key macroeconomic indicators<\/strong> such as the current account deficit and foreign exchange reserves will also be under consideration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Looking Ahead<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

      The upcoming MPC meeting on July 31 will be a bellwether moment<\/strong> for investors, banks, businesses, and households alike. A shift in monetary policy could pave the way for broader economic revival<\/strong>, especially if accompanied by fiscal discipline, exchange rate stability<\/strong>, and governance reforms<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Pakistan\u2019s financial markets, business chambers, and global rating agencies will be watching closely, as a rate cut could signal renewed confidence<\/strong> in the economy\u2019s stabilization trajectory.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

      Islamabad: After a prolonged period of high interest rates, Pakistan may finally witness a reduction in the policy rate, with expectations pointing towards a cut bringing the benchmark interest rate to between 10% and 10.5% starting July 31, 2025. According to official sources, the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8565,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"pagelayer_contact_templates":[],"_pagelayer_content":"","inline_featured_image":false,"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"facebook_3859443944190656_798604363342440":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8564","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-leading"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pakjazbo.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8564","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pakjazbo.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pakjazbo.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pakjazbo.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pakjazbo.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=8564"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/pakjazbo.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8564\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8566,"href":"https:\/\/pakjazbo.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8564\/revisions\/8566"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pakjazbo.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/8565"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pakjazbo.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=8564"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pakjazbo.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=8564"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pakjazbo.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=8564"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}