Policy rates won’t change in next 3 to 6 months: Cabraal

22 January 2014 04:51 am Views - 9160

Sri Lanka’s interest rates are at an appropriate level and the Central Bank probably will keep borrowing costs steady for the next three to six months if current conditions persist, Governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal was quoted as saying to Bloomberg.

“There may be some other adjustments that we may need to make in the economy as we move on, but from the rates point of view, it seems appropriate in the current circumstances,” Cabraal said in an interview in yesterday.

“As it is now, there doesn’t seem to be a need for any change, but if we do see any changes, we will be quick to react.”

The central bank lowered one key interest rate earlier this month after unexpectedly cutting borrowing costs in October. The decision ignored advice from the International Monetary Fund to hold off on further easing to allow time for earlier cuts to take effect.

“The monetary sector looks stable,” Cabraal said on Bloomberg Television yesterday.

“Growth momentum has been back to normal. The exchange rate has been stable. All those conditions give us the confidence to say that the policy measures that we have taken in the past have been working and are working.”

Inflation has been in check and the outlook for price gains is benign, Cabraal said. Consumer prices rose 4.7 percent in December from a year earlier, the slowest pace since February 2012.