SHANGHAI/SINGAPORE: China kept benchmark lending rates unchanged at the monthly fixing on Monday, matching market expectations, after the central bank surprised markets by keeping its medium-term policy rate steady last week.
Market watchers said renewed downside pressure on the yuan and narrowing net interest margins limited the scope for monetary easing from Beijing, even though recent data has underscored the country's uneven economic recovery and deflationary pressures have pushed up real borrowing costs.
