Half of central banks in developed countries in rate-cutting cycle: Report

By Ovunc Kutlu

ISTANBUL (AA) - Half of central banks in developed countries are now in an interest rate-cutting cycle, the Conference Board, a New York-based research group, said in a report on Wednesday.

Last month, the Bank of England, Sweden’s Riksbank, and the Reserve Bank of New Zealand made three more interest rate cuts, bringing the total number of cuts by the major 12 developed markets' central banks to nine, it said.

"Lower financing costs and less restrictive financial conditions should contribute to improved developed world growth prospects in 2025," it added.

The Conference Board said the pace of interest rate cuts should start to gather even more pace in September.

The European Central Bank's decision will come on Sept. 12, and the US Federal Reserve's two-day monetary policy meeting will conclude on Sept. 18, followed by the Bank of England on Sept. 19.

On the other hand, the Bank of Japan is still considering further interest rate increases as long as inflation remains above its 2% target, said the report.