Chinese Banks Maintain Lending Rates as PBOC Signals Caution

  • Monetary easing may be on hold amid inflation, liquidity risks
  • Average mortgage rates already fell to lowest level on record
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Chinese banks maintained their benchmark lending rates for a third month with economists saying the outlook for further easing has diminished as the central bank signals more caution about the inflation outlook.

The one-year loan prime rate was left at 3.65%, according to a statement by the People’s Bank of China on Monday, in line with most forecasts in a Bloomberg survey of economists. The five-year rate, a reference for mortgages, was also maintained at 4.3%.