Bangladesh Bank (BB) on Monday announced its monetary policy statement (MPS) for the second half of the fiscal year 2024-25, maintaining key policy rates to curb inflation.

At a press briefing led by BB Governor Dr Ahsan H. Mansur, the central bank reaffirmed its contractionary stance, keeping the policy rate (REPO) unchanged at 10%.

The Standing Lending Facility (SLF) and Standing Deposit Facility (SDF) rates remain at 11.5% and 8.5%, respectively, forming a policy corridor of ±150 basis points.

Despite tightening measures, inflation has stayed above 10% for a prolonged period. However, recent trends show a decline, with point-to-point inflation easing to 9.94% in January from 11.38% in November, primarily due to lower food inflation.

BB aims to bring inflation within a target range of 7-8% through its firm policy approach and collaboration with key stakeholders.