Kazakh National Bank Raises Interest Rate For Commercial Banks

The National Bank of Kazakhstan (QUB) has raised the interest rate for commercial banks from 2.75 percent to 3.05 percent.

In its statement on December 16, the QUB said the raise will be valid for one week only.

The 2.75 percent interest was introduced in February amid the devaluation of the Kazakh national currency -- the tenge -- which lost almost 20 percent of its value then. The interest rate before that was 0.5 percent.

The QUB's decision was announced on the day when the Russian ruble continued to sink to new lows against the dollar and the euro despite Russia's central bank dramatically raising a key interest rate overnight.

Based on reporting by nationalbank.kz and Interfax