Central bank’s rate decision sparks debate

Further cuts: People walk past the headquarters of the PBoC in Beijing. Most analysts expect the central bank to cut interest rates by 10 basis points by the first half of this year. — Reuters

BEIJING: The People’s Bank of China (PBoC) is leaving economists divided over whether it needs to cut interest rates for a second month to boost a faltering economy.

Sixteen of the 27 economists polled by Bloomberg forecast the central bank will keep the interest rate on its one-year policy loans unchanged today, when it’s scheduled to conduct a monthly medium-term lending facility (MLF) operation.