The Monetary Policy Committee, having evaluated domestic and international economic developments as well as the prospects of Cyprus' economy, has decided that the basic interest rates should remain unchanged.

The key official interest rates of the Central Bank, that is the interest rates of the marginal lending facility (Lombard) and the deposit facility remain unchanged at 5,5% and 2,5% respectively. The reference value for the annual growth rate of bank credit in 2002 is 11%.

For the first time since the liberalization of the interest rates in January 2001, the decision for the rates was taken by the Monetary Policy Committee, not the Central Bank's board.