Bank Negara raises OPR to 3pc
KUALA LUMPUR, May 3 — Bank Negara Malaysia today announced the overnight policy rate (OPR) is up by 25 basis points to 3 per cent.
“At this stage, the OPR is back to the pre-crisis rate and is more in line with the improved state of the economy,” the central bank said in an infographic to explain the move.
Malaysia’s gross domestic product is expected to grow between 4 and 5 per cent in 2023, underpinned by strong consumer spending as the job market and wages continue to show signs of improvement, BNM said in its forecast released in March.
Stronger than expected growth in hiring and income have helped Malaysia weather the volatility so far, BNM governor Tan Sri Nor Shamsiah Mohd Yunus said at a press conference to announce the banks’s 2022 Economic Monitor Report.
The central bank said that inflation, although expected to trend lower by year-end, would remain “elevated” at between 2.8 to 3.8 per cent.
“It's important to ensure the OPR will be at the appropriate rate to curtail the effects of prolonged low interest rates (such as too much borrowing),” the bank's Monetary Policy Committee said in the statement to announce the benchmark rate increase.
“BNM will ensure the OPR will support sustainable growth but at the same time contain inflation,” it added.
