MPC holds key rate on declining inflation

The MPC has retained the Central Bank Rate at 8.5 per cent, citing declining inflation and a stabilising currency, and said it will further rein on lenders to spur credit uptake. The CBR will be at a 21-month level by the time the Monetary Policy Committee meets in January, having first been set in April 2013. It said holding the rate will continue anchoring inflationary expectations. In an expansionary stance, the MPC said the Central Bank is analysing premiums charged by lenders under the new formula of calculating the cost of credit, with “plans to publish it for reference to aid borrowers...