UAE Central Bank holds rates following Fed decision

The UAE Central Bank on Wednesday decided to maintain the base rate applicable to the overnight deposit facility at 5.40 per cent.

The UAE’s decision follows that of the US Federal Reserve, which on Wednesday decided to leave interest rates unchanged. The UAE follows US monetary policy as the dirham is pegged to the dollar.

In a statement after the two-day Federal Open Market Committee meeting, the Fed decided to maintain the target range for the federal funds rate at 5.25 to 5.5 per cent. In its statement, the Fed noted that “there has been modest further progress” toward its 2 per cent inflation objective.

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The annual consumer price index came in at 3.3 per cent in May, down 0.1 percentage point from April, the Labor Department said in a statement earlier on Wednesday — slightly below expectations.

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