Bangladesh Bank Postpones Announcement of New Monetary Policy

According to central bank sources, the nature of the upcoming monetary policy will depend significantly on the inflation rate for January. If inflation shows a notable decline this month, there may be some easing of policy; otherwise, the current contractionary stance will be maintained. While the Monetary Policy Committee had finalized the structural framework on January 22 and the Board of Directors approved it last Tuesday, the announcement was stalled at the last minute to incorporate explanatory data regarding the persistent inflation levels.

Sources indicate that the initial plan for the new MPS was to keep the policy (repo) rate unchanged at 10%. Governor Dr. Ahsan H. Mansur had previously signaled that this restrictive stance would remain until inflation dropped below the 7% threshold. With point-to-point inflation rising to 8.49% in December, the central bank is wary of the risks associated with lowering interest rates prematurely.

The new date for the announcement has not yet been finalized. The central bank board will convene once the full inflation statistics for January are available to set a new release date. This postponement means investors and the business community will have to wait longer for clarity on interest rate trajectories.