ANZ and Macquarie Bank delivered australian banks fixed rate reductions today, cutting fixed home loan rates while the broader major-bank trend has been moving up. ANZ cut its 2-year and 3-year fixed home loan rates by up to 0.10 percentage points, and Macquarie Bank lowered some fixed rates by up to 0.45 percentage points.
The lowest ANZ fixed rate is now 6.29 per cent for two years, while Macquarie’s lowest fixed rate is 6.09 per cent for three years. For borrowers comparing fixed offers, that puts the two lenders ahead of big-bank rivals that have recently been lifting rates rather than trimming them.
Sally Tindall on the shift
Sally Tindall, Canstar data insights director, said: “ANZ and Macquarie have today shifted gears, cutting fixed home loan rates at a time when the majority of the market is still trending up.” She added: “While these cuts are modest, they are enough to put Macquarie and ANZ in front of their big bank competitors.”
Last Friday, NAB hiked its fixed rates by 0.15 percentage points. Yesterday, Westpac lifted select fixed rates by 0.05 percentage points. Against that backdrop, the latest cuts are a clear break from the direction the market has been taking over the past week.
RBA pause expectations
The majority of economists expect the Reserve Bank to pause at its June meeting, but the next move is still being debated. Westpac expects two more cash rate hikes in August and September, while NAB expects one more hike in August.
CBA and ANZ think the rate hiking cycle is over, and CBA is anticipating two rate cuts in May and August next year. That split leaves fixed-rate borrowers with a narrower question than the broader economy: whether to lock in now, or wait for a clearer signal from the RBA and the banks.
Bullock on inflation pressure
This week, RBA governor Michele Bullock told Senate Estimates it was a “difficult time” for many households. She also said: “But it is important that we bring inflation under control. If high inflation persists, it risks becoming embedded in price and wage-setting behaviour, particularly given the prolonged period over which underlying inflation has been above 3 per cent since the pandemic,”
The central bank expects inflation to continue increasing in the near term and underlying inflation to remain above the target range until mid-2027. For borrowers, that keeps the fixed-rate market sensitive to each new move from the major lenders, because today’s cheaper offers can be overtaken quickly if the rate outlook shifts again.
Anyone shopping for a fixed loan now is looking at a market split between lenders cutting today and others raising only days earlier, with the RBA’s June meeting still the next decisive test.
