Asunción: Given the shopping frenzy in December, traditionally the strongest trading month, banks are preparing to look good to their customers.
On the one hand, they announced that they will reduce the interest rates they charge on loans and credit cards during the month of December, and on the other hand, they will reportedly offer better interest rates on fixed deposit savings.
Consumers, customers and businesses in general are excited about the news and expect sales to increase by at least 15% compared to December last year as economic conditions and consumer confidence have improved in recent months.
With the greater availability of cash, credit and other payment options characteristic of the end of the year, interest rate limits could be made more flexible in both cases to encourage consumption and investment.
For this last month of 2023, the maximum reference value for credit cards in Guaranies was 17.42%, 0.11 percentage points less than in November and 0.9% below the limit established for December 2022.
In this way, the downward trend observed in the limits on credit cards denominated in local currency continues, which would partly reflect the adjustments in the same spirit of monetary policy. The maximum interest rate is again 10.30% for foreign currencies.
As for interest rates on loans from the system, the current limit will be 30.27% in December, remaining in a similar range to a year ago.
savings
On the other hand, with the increase in the monetary policy interest rate over the course of a year, the interest rates for savers in both local and foreign currencies have increased accordingly. This is reflected in the portfolios in both currencies, which have grown at similar rates throughout 2023.
Looking at the type of deposits, unlike at the beginning of the year and for the sixth month in a row, long-term savings increased by 60%, although their weight in the total is small. Deposits in current accounts (2.8%) and short-term accounts (10%) also increased.
At the end of the third quarter of 2023, the total value of deposits in the banking system registered an increase of 13.5% year-on-year, rising to 143 trillion guaranies ($19.5 billion), the highest value ever recorded. This brings to an end a year of consecutive increases, after a season of low deposit momentum and the complex conditions of previous years.
purchasing power
The Minister of Economy and Finance, Carlos Fernández, highlighted the government’s actions in the first 100 days of its term in an interview on the state broadcaster. On this occasion, he particularly emphasized active efforts to restore citizens’ purchasing power.
Among the measures implemented, he mentioned the reduction in fuel costs and emphasized that this measure represented significant progress in restoring the purchasing power of the population. Secondly, he pointed out that inflation had been brought under control, which had allowed the central bank to further reduce its interest rate, which had opened the possibility of accessing cheaper loans.
“So these are two issues that seem to me to be very important when it comes to improving people’s financial circumstances, but each of us started the work with the aim of maintaining much more sustainable growth and, above all, the “To reach people,” said the minister.
Weekly paper / El Nacional / Featured image archive
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2023-12-05 03:04:15
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