China’s central bank slashed its mortgage rate as the world’s second-largest economy battles to shore up its property market
The People's Bank of China (PBOC) cut the five-year loan prime rate (LPR) by 1.5 percentage points - matching its biggest cut on record, the BBC reported.
A property crisis has crippled some building projects in the country as businesses and consumers continue to be hit by Beijing’s zero-Covid policies.
Last week, PBOC cut its five-year LPR to 4.30% from 4.45%, and on Monday lowered it again to 4.2%, and lowered its one-year loan prime rate by 5 basis points to 3.65%.
In the past year, China's property crisis has wiped more than a trillion dollars off of the sector's value.
Home sales have fallen for 11 consecutive months, according to official data, the longest slump since China created a private property market in the late 1990s.
A number of Chinese developers have reportedly stopped construction on already-sold homes due to financial concerns, and many home buyers have also threatened not to pay their mortgages until work resumes.
China's government has also indicated it may miss its 5.5% annual economic growth target.