ASB cuts 1 year rate below rivals, but bumps up 5 year rate

Image / 123rf

New Zealand's second-largest mortgage lender has cut rates on short-term loans, but raised its three-, four- and five-year rates amid rising inflation pressure.

ASB has cut its one-year fixed rate by four basis points to 2.25 per cent. The new rate matches one-year offers from ICBC and HSBC, and is lower than ASB's main rivals, Herald mortgage data supplier Interest.co.nz says.

ASB also cut its six month fixed rate by 40 basis points to 2.99 per cent, which is now well below all its main rivals, Interest.co.nz says.

However, ASB's five-year fixed offer has been raised 40 basis points to 3.39 per cent.

The bank's four-year rate is up 20 basis points to 3.19 per cent and its three-year rate up 24 basis points to 2.89 per cent.

On April 14, the Reserve Bank left the official cash rate on hold at 0.25 per cent and said it is still prepared to go lower if required.

In a Monetary Policy Review, Reserve Bank Governor Adrian Orr said the global economic outlook had continued to improve since February.

"However, economic uncertainty remains elevated and divergences in economic growth both within and between countries are significant," Orr said.

New Zealand's commodity export prices continued to benefit from robust global demand.

But "economic activity in New Zealand slowed over the summer months following the earlier rebound in domestic spending", Orr said.

"Short-term data continues to be highly variable as a result of the economic impacts of Covid-19."

Economists canvassed by the Herald on April 22 saw short-term factors such as supply chain disruption behind pressure on prices.

The consensus was that interest rates would not follow inflation higher.