The Bank of Canada is being urged to cut a key lending rate by one-half of a point when it makes its next monetary policy decision on Tuesday morning.

The C.D. Howe Institute’s Monetary Policy Council, which is made up of economists and academics, called on the Bank of Canada to lower borrowing rates by one-half of a percentage point, although the vote of its members was not unanimous. Six of 10 panel members wanted the target for the overnight rate dropped to 2%, while three recommended a cut to 2.25% and one recommended holding the rate steady at 2.5%.

The panel said the outlook for growth and prices is very uncertain due to the current turbulence in credit markets and the rapidly deteriorating economic outlook.

C.D. Howe said most members of the monetary policy council felt that the downside risks justified further interest rate easing from the Bank of Canada even after the coordinated central-bank cut on Oct. 8.