HDFC Bank, Canara lower lending rate; Axis cuts deposit rate

New Delhi, August 31

Starting a fresh round of rate cuts after repeated calls from RBI, private lender HDFC Bank and state-run Canara Bank today lowered their lending rates by up to 0.35%, a move that will make home and other loans cheaper for consumers.

Other banks may also follow suit due to competitive pressure.

HDFC Bank today lowered base rate by 0.35% to 9.35% — the lowest in the industry, while Canara Bank cut its minimum lending rate by 0.10% to 9.90%.

At the same time, country's third largest private lender Axis Bank cut its deposit rates by up to 0.50% across maturities. A cut in deposit rate is generally considered a precursor for reduction in lending rates.

In its monetary policy review on August 4, RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan had rued that banks had lowered their rates by only 30 basis points despite the central bank having cut its benchmark rate by as much as 75 basis points since January. 100 basis points are equivalent to one percentage point.

Rajan had also linked better monetary policy transmission or banks cutting their lending rates to any future rate reduction by the central bank.

"HDFC Bank has decided to lower its base rate, or the minimum rate of lending, to the lowest level in the industry, to 9.35 per cent from the existing 9.70 per cent. The new rates will be effective tomorrow," a source said. — PTI