The Saudi Central Bank, known as SAMA, cut its repurchase agreement rate by 25 basis points to 5.00% on 18 December 2024, matching a simultaneous move by the US Federal Reserve and rounding off a year in which the kingdom's monetary authority reduced borrowing costs by a cumulative 100 basis points. SAMA also lowered its reverse repo rate by 25 basis points to 4.50%.
Saudi Arabia maintains an exchange-rate peg to the US dollar, under which SAMA generally follows Federal Reserve policy.
FULL-YEAR EASING REACHES 100 BASIS POINTS
The December cut is the third reduction SAMA has delivered across 2024, bringing total easing over the year to 100 basis points.
SAMA's move was mirrored across the Gulf: the UAE, Oman and Bahrain cut by 25 basis points and Qatar by 30 basis points, each tracking the Fed.
FORWARD GUIDANCE
The bank's statement provided no explicit forward guidance on the number or pace of future reductions.
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