Reserve Bank raises repo rate to 4%

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As widely expected, South African Reserve Bank (Sarb) governor Lesetja Kganyago announced a 25 basis points increase in the repo rate on Thursday, taking the key rate that it lends to commercial banks to 4%.

This means that the prime lending rate of commercial banks will increase to 7.5%.

The decision follows the conclusion of the Sarb’s first Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting of 2022 and comes on the back of spiking inflation both locally and internationally.