China's central bank cut interest rates on Friday for the sixth time in less than a year, and it again lowered the amount of cash that banks must hold as reserves in a bid to jump start growth in its stuttering economy.
Monetary policy easing in the world's second-largest economy is at its most aggressive since the 2008/09 financial crisis, as growth looks set to slip to a 25-year-low this year of under 7 percent.
Yet underscoring China's drive to deepen financial reforms, which many believe are necessary to invigorate the economy, the People's Bank of China said it was freeing the interest rate market by scrapping a ceiling on deposit rates.
China's policy loosening came a day after the European Central Bank said it could give a bigger policy jolt to the economy as soon as December to fight falling prices.