The People's Republic of China announced to keep interest rates unchanged in the country, as the People's Bank of China decided to keep the main lending rate (for one year) unchanged at 3.65% levels for the second month in a row, after lowering it last August from 3.7% which continued at the same level for 7 months.

The People's Bank of China also kept the 5-year lending rate steady at 4.3%, CNBC Arabia reported.

Inflation in China hit a two-year high in July at 2.7% y/y, mainly due to a rebound in higher pork prices.

However, the inflation rate in China remains much lower than the United States of America, which previously reported recording inflation levels of 8.3%, with the increase in food and housing costs in a way that parallels the decline in gas prices.

On Friday, China announced that the country's retail sales rose by 5.4% in August, exceeding the Reuters forecast of 3.5%.

In mid-August, the People's Bank of China decided to cut interest rates for the second time in a row this year and also withdrew some cash from the banking system in an attempt to revive demand for credit to support the economy affected by the Corona virus.

The People's Bank of China attributed the move at the time to reasonably maintaining sufficient liquidity in the banking system.