Bank Negara seen slashing key rate by 50 bps on pandemic worries

Seven out of 10 economists polled saw Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) cutting its overnight policy rate by 50 basis points to 2%, matching the historic low set in 2009 during the global financial crisis.

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia's central bank is expected to make the biggest cut to its benchmark interest rate since 2009 next week, a Reuters poll showed, to prop up an economy struggling with the effects of the coronavirus pandemic.

Seven out of 10 economists polled saw Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) cutting its overnight policy rate by 50 basis points to 2%, matching the historic low set in 2009 during the global financial crisis.