US Fed cut may prompt China to lower its policy rate in 4 years: Report

While Chinese officials continue to downplay the likelihood of more aggressive easing, the economy has been slow to respond to a host of earlier stimulus measures

China's central bank could cut its benchmark policy rate for the first time in four years if the US Federal Reserve delivers a widely expected cut in late July, analysts say, as Chinese policymakers step up support for the slowing economy.

Market watchers, however, believe the People's Bank of China (PBOC) is more likely to follow any US rate cut by lowering its key short-term money market rates.

It would not be the first time the PBOC has followed the Fed's lead. In 2017 and 2018, the bank raised short-term money rates hours after U.S. hikes, although in more modest and symbolic