Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain raise interest rates, mirroring Federal Reserve
The US Federal Reserve raised rates by 0.25% on Wednesday, despite concerns about the effect on the global financial climate.
The central banks of Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Bahrain raised their key policy rates by 0.25% on Wednesday.
The move followed the US Federal Reserve raising interest rates by the same percentage earlier in the day as it continues to fight inflation.
Oman's central bank raised its rate by 0.25% later on Wednesday, while the United Arab Emirates did the same the following day on Thursday. Kuwait did not appear to announce a decision.
Why it matters: The Federal Reserve has been aggressively raising rates since last year in response to inflation. But the rate hikes are controversial due to the pressure they put on the financial system by making borrowing more expensive. The failure of Silicon Valley Bank earlier this month was in part due to investors becoming more risk-averse in response to the rising rates.
