National Bank of Kazakhstan says no scope for lowering base rate before end of H1 2026

ASTANA. Nov 28 (November) - National Bank of Kazakhstan is not expecting to lower the base rate before the end of the first half of 2026 considering the country's economic situation, the bank said in a statement.

"The National Bank does not currently see any scope for lowering the rate before the end of the first half of 2026, taking into account the high inflation expectations, baseline inflation trends and the delayed effect of tariff and tax reforms," the statement reads.

"If there are no convincing signs of a stable trend of slowing inflation, it is not out of the question that monetary conditions will be toughened," the bank said.

The National Bank held the base rate at 18% per annum on Friday. It has been at this level since October.

Last week, National Bank of Kazakhstan Governor Timur Suleimenov said that the bank was ready to begin a gradual cycle of lowering the base rate in 2026 after inflation decreases. He said that the set of measures approved by the Kazakh government to combat the growth in tariffs would bring inflation expectations down.