NTMA interest rates

Good question re doing it on a BH. Having worked very close to those that issue the announcements, it's normally bad news (reductions in rates) that are anounced at 5pm on a Friday of a Bank Holiday. It's a silly strategy in the hope it won't make the news or be widely commented on in print.

Back in March they were celebrating the new business the previous iincreased rates brought (they were not announced on BH). I would say the investments have tailed off a lot since then.
 
I can't find the last drop, but at end July 2017 the NTMA stated, when reducing prize bonds rate from 0.85% to 0.5%, that:

"The interest rate reduction reflects changes across the retail savings market and the fall in the cost of borrowing by the State. However, the change also maintains the balance of remaining competitive and providing good value for the holders of Prize Bonds."

I wonder do they still think they are "maintaining" that balance.
 
While it was the practice at one time for State Savings rate changes to be announced only on Bank Holidays weekends, the last two changes were announced on regular weekends (26/03/2023 and 24/01/2021). So there wouldn't appear to be any reason to single out next weekend.

Also, the rates were changed just four months ago, and I can't remember any year in which more than one rate change was announced. Not to say that it couldn't happen, and I certainly wouldn't object if it did.
 
NTMA were under a lot of pressure from banks to lower rates in State Savings to level the field. I would say that situation still applies. Have banks deposit rates gone up significanrtly to make State Savings uncompetitive? Most of the rate increases announced by the banks are window dressing and for new accounts. Rates on existing deposits have not increased that much, if at all on some.
 
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Might be a good strategy for state to increase their rates to force banks to do the same for deposits.....Banks are passing on most of the mortgage rate increases but very little on the deposit rates and that helped BOI make > €1B profit
 
There has never been any news on the weekend on a state savings rate change until the Sunday morning. No reason to expect anything different on this occasion.
 
Freelance said:
There has never been any news on the weekend on a state savings rate change until the Sunday morning.
Click to expand...
Correct. For at least the last 10 years press releases have been embargoed until the Sunday. So it'll make it into Sunday papers, updated on NTMA website, and accompanied by a statement from Minister of Finance on the Gov.ie website.
 
Except that last time the order was reversed. McGrath got his statement out first, followed by the state savings website update, followed by the NTMA website.
 
On news at 1 today minister McGrath more or less said state saving rates will increase, just takes Ntma some time to go through the process.
 
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