China has cut interest rates for fifth time in nine months in a new effort to shore up slowing economic growth.
The central bank said Tuesday the benchmark rate for a one-year loan will be cut by 0.25 percentage points to 4.6% and the one-year rate for deposits will fall by a similar margin to 1.75%.
The bank also increased the amount of money available for lending by reducing the minimum reserves banks are required to hold by 0.5 percentage points.
Read: Chinese stocks suffer biggest drop in eight years
The move came after China’s main stock market index fell for a fourth day, plunging 7.6% to an eight-month low.
The Shanghai Composite Index closed Tuesday down 244.94 points to 2,964.97 amid sharp declines that have rattled investors abroad and triggered a global stock sell-off. It tumbled 8.5% on Monday.
Chinese stocks have plunged over the last two weeks despite a multibillion-dollar government effort to stop a slide in prices.
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