Hong Kong's major banks kept their prime rates unchanged as expected, despite the US Federal Reserve cutting the rate by 25 basis points.
The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation, BOC Hong Kong (2388), and the Hang Seng Bank (0011) maintained their rates at 5 percent.
Standard Chartered Bank (Hong Kong) also held its rate at 5.25 percent.
Local lenders last trimmed their rates by 12.5 basis points in October.
The savings rate for their Hong Kong dollar savings deposits also remained unchanged.
Analysts believe there is no room for local banks to further reduce the prime rate, and it is also unlikely for lenders to decrease the cap for mortgage rates in the short run.
Borrowing costs for home purchases are expected to stay at 3.25 percent most of the time in the first half of next year, as the Hong Kong interbank offered rates remained elevated.
The mortgage-linked one-month Hibor inched up nearly 2 basis points to 3.13387 percent on Thursday after the cut. The rate is projected to be around 2 percent in 2026. It would need to drop below 1.95 percent to have an impact on the mortgage rates.
