OTTAWA (Reuters) - The Bank of Canada held its key overnight interest rate at a record low 0.25% as expected on Wednesday and said it would cut its weekly net purchases of government of Canada bonds to a target of C$2 billion ($1.6 billion) from C$3 billion. In a statement, the central bank said it remained committed to keeping the interest rate unchanged until economic slack was absorbed. This is expected to happen some time in the second half of 2022. ($1 = 1.2458 Canadian dollars) Reporting by Julie Gordon in Ottawa Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.