BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 16. The Central Bank of Uzbekistan (CBU) decided to reduce the key interest rate by 1 percentage point - to 14 percent per annum, from March 16, 2023, Trend reports via the press service of the CBU.
The CBU says that the reduction of the main rate will allow the removal of the additional burden imposed by the increase in the interest rate in response to the risks in March last year.
The main rate at 14 percent per annum with a downward trend in the inflation forecast (8.5-9.5 percent) will ensure the preservation of moderately tight monetary conditions.
Meanwhile, during the first two months of 2023, the annual inflation rate decreased to 12.2 percent per annum. However, in the first half of March, the prices of basic food products in consumer markets were stable, and after a rise in January, they moved towards a downward trend.
Furthermore, from September 2020 to March 17, 2022, CBU kept the main interest rate at 14 percent. On March 17, the Central Bank increased the main interest rate to 17 percent and kept it until June 9, 2022.
On June 9, 2022, the Central Bank decided to reduce the main rate by 1 percentage point to the level of 16 percent per annum, and at the end of July, the main rate was reduced by 1 percentage point to the level of 15 percent.
From September 2022 to March 16, 2023, CBU kept the key interest rate at the level of 15 percent.