China’s benchmark lending rates were kept unchanged, the country’s central bank said Monday, as the world’s second-largest economy showed more signs of recovery from its COVID reopening.
The one-year loan price rate remained unchanged at 3.65% and the five-year LPR was steady at 4.3%, said the People’s Bank of China.
The unchanged LPR was widely expected by the market after the PBOC kept a key policy rate–the interest rate of the medium-term lending facility that is used to price LPR– steady earlier this month.
The move also came after the Chinese economy showed more signs of recovery from its Covid reopening, with spending in travel, catering and other service sectors rebounding strongly in the past weeks.
Still, many economists expect the PBOC to lower the lending benchmarks this year to boost domestic demand, which was set as a priority by Chinese leaders for this year.