Siddique Islam The interbank call money rate hit 10 per cent Sunday, the last working day before the Eid-ul-Azha festival, because of higher withdrawal of cash from the banks, treasury officials said. The call rate ranged between 5.80 per cent and 10.00 per cent on the day against the previous range between 5.80 per cent and 9.00 per cent. The weighted average rate of the call money rose to 9.14 per cent Sunday from 8.16 per cent of the previous working day, according to the Bangladesh Bank (BB) statistics. However, most of the deals were settled at rates varying between 9.00 per cent and 10.00 per cent, the market operators said. The total turnover in the call money market came down to Tk 83.63 billion on the day from Tk 88.46 billion Thursday last, the BB data showed. "The call money rate increased slightly on the last working day ahead of the Eid mainly due to higher demand for cash from the banks," a senior treasury official of a leading private commercial bank told the FE. He also said the short-term borrowings normally increase before the Eid as the banks need to meet their clients' growing demand for cash. "We expect that the call money rate will ease after the Eid holidays," the treasury official said, adding that there was no liquidity shortfall currently in the country's banking sector. Talking to the FE, a senior official of the BB said the call money rate was quite normal ahead of Durga Puja and Eid festivals. "We've expedited purchase of the US dollar from the commercial banks ahead of the Eid-ul-Azha to keep the interbank foreign exchange (forex) market stable," the central banker said. As part of the latest moves, the BB bought US$ 265 million from the banks directly during three working days in the last week to offset the higher supply of foreign exchange in the market before the Eid. The BB official also said the central bank strengthened its intervention in the forex market to protect the interests of exporters and migrant workers by keeping the exchange rate of Bangladesh Taka (BDT) against the greenback stable. A total of $1.395 billion was bought from the commercial banks between July 1 and October 10 last of the current fiscal (FY) 2013-14 as part of the BB's intervention in the market. However, the country's foreign exchange reserve stood at $ 16.70 billion on the day following the US dollar purchase.
Call money rate hits 10pc on rush for fund withdrawal
FE Team | Published: October 14, 2013 00:00:00 | Updated: February 01, 2018 00:00:00
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