Westpac NZ has announced interest rate changes that will see hikes for short-term borrowers and drops for those making repayments in the long-term.
The updated rates follow the rise in the Official Cash Rate (OCR) last week, a 50 basis point climb to 5.25%, which was higher than what most economists predicted.
Westpac's general manager of product, sustainability and marketing, Sarah Hearn, said the OCR jump was a factor behind the changes.
"Our variable lending and on-call savings interest rates are closely tied to movements in the OCR," she said.
"That’s why we’re increasing the interest rate on our variable home loans by 40bp [basis points] and on our on-call consumer savings products by 40bp to 50bp."
Hearn added that Westpac would be cutting interest rates on loans with terms ranging from three to five years, some seeing drops of up to 60 basis points.
Eligible customers will also have access to "special" rates of 5.99% p.a. for each of those terms.
"These competitive rates are a helpful way for customers to gain certainty about their repayments, which is important in a period like this where the outlook on interest rates is unclear," Hearn said.
Standard fixed rates on home loans have also been decreased to 6.59% p.a. for three-, four- and five-year terms.
Shorter terms have climbed higher into the mid-7% range, the biggest upward shift for fixed home loans being a 30 basis point climb to 7.49% p.a. for a six-month term.
Term investment rates have seen a similar pattern in changes, with terms of three to five years lowering to 5.20% p.a. while the highest rate is 5.70% p.a. for a 12-month term.
Savings rates have climbed across the board, with the Notice Saver rate rising 50 basis points to 4.50% p.a.; the Westpac Bonus Saver/PIE rate climbing 50 basis points to 4.25% p.a.; and the Simple Saver rate going up 40 basis points to 2.50% p.a.
It follows ANZ's announcement yesterday of higher interest rates on some home loans and deposits.
Some of its biggest changes include a rise in up to 14 to 20 basis for home loan rates, 10 to 25 basis points for term deposit rates, and 50 basis points for its serious saver account rate.
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