Bank Negara may cut OPR by 50bps on Tuesday and 25bps in July

The economy contracted in the first quarter due to the Covid-19 pandemic, forcing the government to impose a lockdown on critical areas. The MCO also impacted economic activity since it was imposed March 18 and was on Monday lifted conditionally.

KUALA LUMPUR: Bank Negara is expected to slash the overnight policy rate (OPR) by 50 basis points (bps) on Tuesday during its monetary policy committee (MPC) and a further 25bps in July, said Standard Chartered Global Research.

It said on Monday the central bank is expected to cut the rates down to 2% on Tuesday and subsequently to 1.75% two months later, lower than the 2% reached during the global financial crisis in 2008 to 2009.