Page 8 - Interest Rates

Govt keeps small savings schemes' interest rates unchanged for Q2FY25

The government on Friday left the interest rates on various small savings schemes unchanged for the quarter beginning July 1, 2024. "The rates of interest on various small savings schemes for the second quarter of FY 2024-25, starting from July 1, 2024, and ending on September 30, 2024, shall remain unchanged from those notified for the first quarter (March 1, 2024, to June 30, 2024) of FY 2024-25," said a finance ministry notification. As per the notification, deposits under the Sukanya Samriddhi scheme will attract an interest rate of 8.2 per cent, while the rate on a three-year term deposit remains at 7.1 per cent. The interest rates for popular PPF and post office savings deposits scheme too have been retained at 7.1 per cent and 4 per cent, respectively. The interest rate on the Kisan Vikas Patra will be 7.5 per cent, and the investments will mature in 115 months. The interest rate on the National Savings Certificate (NSC) will remain at 7.7 per cent for the July-September 20

Bank of England to keep rates at 16-year high of 5.25% before UK election

Last month the central bank forecast inflation would rise to around 2.6 per cent by the end of the year

Commercial properties become stranded across Europe poor energy performance

The development is playing out as the commercial market struggles to right itself after years of turbulence due to higher interest rates and volatile post-pandemic occupancy rates

As global central banks consider rate cuts, inflation worries loom

Canada and the European Central Bank have been the first ones to introduce rate cuts, however, they have expressed their concerns about inflation

Russian central bank keeps key rate unchanged at 16%; inflation at 8.17%

"The Bank of Russia holds open the prospect of increasing the key rate at its upcoming meeting," the bank said in a statement

Interest rate spreads hit new 10-year low of 2.25% for PSBs in April 2024

The spread between the outstanding lending and deposit rates has narrowed compared to the spread between fresh lending and deposit rates

Fixed Deposit: From SBI to PNB, interest rates offered by banks in India

Banks offer varying interest rates on FDs, which also depend on the duration of the deposit

Interest rates have peaked, moderation expected towards year-end: PNB MD

Days before RBI's monetary policy, Punjab National Bank (PNB) managing director Atul Kumar Goel said interest rates have peaked and are expected to see a reversal by the end of this year. The Monetary Policy Committee, which is expected to keep the policy rate unchanged for the eighth time in a row, is scheduled to begin its meeting on June 5. The decision of the rate-setting panel will be announced on June 7. "Interest rates are contingent upon so many factors like growth, inflation, monetary policy stance of other countries. I think rates have reached the peak. I think after some time maybe by the end of this year, we can see some reduction in the rate of interest," he told PTI. There should not be an increase in the deposit rate as 95 per cent of deposits have already been repriced, he said. Goel said the Retail, Agriculture and MSME (RAM) segment is going to be the focus area for the bank but would not shy away from financing good corporate loans. "RAM is about 55 per cent of

Monetary policy: RBI unlikely to cut interest rate on June 7, say experts

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is unlikely to cut the benchmark interest rate at its upcoming monetary policy review meeting, taking place soon after the announcement of the Lok Sabha election results, amid inflation challenges, said experts. The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) may also refrain from rate cut as economic growth is picking up, notwithstanding the elevated interest rate of 6.5 per cent (repo) prevailing since February 2023. The meeting of the Reserve Bank Governor Shaktikanta Das headed MPC is scheduled for June 5 to 7. The decision will be announced on June 7 (Friday). Results of the Lok Sabha elections will be announced on June 4. The central bank last hiked the repo rate to 6.5 per cent in February 2023 and since then it has held the rate at same level in its previous six bi-monthly policies. If the interest rate remains untouched again on June 7, it would be the eighth time for the RBI to maintain the status quo on the benchmark repo rate. On expectations from the J

Plenty of room for key interest rate reductions, says ECB's Villeroy

After a first rate cute next month that Villeroy described as a "done deal", debate among ECB policymakers remains open about how fast and far to keep easing after that

Consensus growing on rate cut as inflation diminishes: ECB's Panetta

Panetta has said inflation is showing a common underlying trend as it is declining in all major economic areas and that risks to financial stability have reduced

Crude oil falls more than $1 as Fed rate outlook stokes demand fears

"Fears of weaker demand led to selling as the prospect of a Fed rate cut became more distant," said analyst Toshitaka Tazawa at Fujitomi Securities

Gold hits record high at $2,438 as Fed rate cut bets burnish appeal

The dollar index remained subdued, making greenback-priced bullion more attractive to buyers holding other currencies

Why did Chris Wood of Jefferies sell his holding in HDFC Bank stock?

Calendar year 2024 (CY24) will be a good year for 'quality stocks and bonds', according to analysts at Morgan Stanley. Stocks, they said, have priced in a 'perfect landing' scenario

Cancelling credit card, uncluttering home: Top personal finance stories

Our top stories this week tell you about the procedure to cancel a card and the various storage solutions for your home

US Fed's NY prez Williams sees no current reason to change policy stance

Fed officials have pushed out expectations for the first interest-rate cut, emphasizing a need to keep borrowing costs elevated for longer amid disappointing inflation prints in the first quarter

ECB not in hurry to cut rates, should take measured steps after Jun: Kazaks

The ECB has all but promised a rate cut on June 6 so the discussion has shifted to how quickly its next move should come and what conditions must be met for more easing

Gold declines as traders await key US inflation data for more rate cut cues

Spot gold fell 0.7% to $2,342.95 per ounce by 1442 GMT. It had hit its highest level since April 22 on Friday

BoE moves closer to first rate cut since 2020, as second official backs cut

The BoE said on Thursday its Monetary Policy Committee voted 7-2 to keep rates at a 16-year high of 5.25% after Deputy Governor Dave Ramsden joined Swati Dhingra in voting for a cut to 5%

FTSE 100 hits record high, pound slips ahead of BoE interest rate verdict

The blue-chip FTSE 100 ended the session up 0.5%, notching a record high of 20,491.99 points