KATHMANDU: The Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) has released its inaugural quarterly review of the monetary policy for the ongoing fiscal year.

The review, officially endorsed during Friday’s NRB Board of Directors meeting, provides a comprehensive assessment of various factors impacting current inflation rates.

As part of this review, the NRB has decided to decrease bank rates from 7.5 percent to 7 percent, considering the prevailing Balance of Payment status and the growth rate of bank loans to the private sector. Furthermore, policy rates have been adjusted to 5.5 percent, down from the previous 6.5 percent.

Notably, there have been no alterations to the mandatory cash reserve ratios and statutory liquidity ratios. However, a notable change involves the treatment of debentures issued by banks and financial institutions. While initially considered 100 percent as a source until December-January, the decision has been revised to count them as 50 percent until the conclusion of the current fiscal year.