The announcement that the repo rate will remain unchanged at 5.75 percent gives consumers a welcome breather, FNB said.
“First National Bank will maintain its prime lending rate at 9.25 percent following the decision earlier today by the SARB monetary policy committee,” it said in a statement.
CEO Jacques Celliers said after a tough year consumers had recently seen some relief with lower fuel prices, with now a further two months of rate stability.
“As we all look towards the coming holidays, stable rates give consumers a secure platform from which they can plan their finances in 2015,” he said.
“We still see that consumers are very wary regarding large purchases that require bank funding. This pattern is understandable in the light of recent disappointing economic growth figures.”
However, with some good fortune, prospects should improve in the coming year and consumers should factor in rate hikes during 2015 as confidence returned, he said.
Nedbank also announced no change to its current prime overdraft rate, the vehicle and asset finance rate, and the mortgage rate applicable to home loans. Charitable donations made on behalf of clients to a Nedbank Affinity linked investment account would remain unchanged as well.
Earlier , SA Reserve Bank governor Lesetja Kganyago announced in Pretoria the repo rate would remain unchanged.
“The committee remains of the view that interest rates will have to normalise over time,” he told media.
“However, given the lower trajectory of headline inflation and the continued weak state of the economy, the MPC has unanimously decided to keep the repurchase rate unchanged at 5.75 percent per annum at this stage.”
The timing of future interest rate increases depended on a range of factors, including inflation expectation changes, the pace of monetary policy normalisation in the United States, and the state of the domestic economy.
Sapa