Australia and New Zealand on Monday were the latest countries to see their central banks taking measures to help their economies fight the effects of the coronavirus pandemic, EDNews reports citing Aljazeera.
The moves follow a shock rate cut by the United States Federal Reserve on Sunday, which lowered interest rates to near zero in another emergency move to help shore up the US economy as the outbreak derails trade, tourism and domestic production.
Australia's central bank, the Reserve Bank of Australia, poured $3.6bn in liquidity into Australia's financial system and said it was prepared to buy government bonds, while the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) slashed interest rates by three-quarters of a percentage point to a record low on Monday following an emergency meeting.
Currencies of both countries sank following the moves, with the Australian dollar down 0.5 percent to $0.6163 while the New Zealand dollar falling 0.3 percent to $0.6040.
RBNZ also cut its official cash rate (OCR) to 0.25 percent, and pledged to keep it at this level for at least 12 months, the banks said in its statement.
The moves, however, did little to calm market jitters, with the local share market falling as much as 7 percent in morning trading.