Banks kept deposit rates unchanged in December 2023, while they reduced loan rates, narrowing the margin between them.

According to data from the Bank of Greece, the weighted average interest rate on new deposits remained almost unchanged at 0.51%, while the corresponding interest rate on new loans decreased to 6.06% mresulting in the interest margin between existing deposits and loans to decrease to 5.84% from 5.92% which was in November.

In more detail, the average weighted interest rate of all new loans to households and businesses decreased by 19 basis points and formed at 6.06%.

In particular, the average interest rate on consumer loans without a fixed term (a category that includes loans through credit cards, open loans and overdrafts from current accounts) increased by 15 basis points and stood at 15.11%.

The average interest rate of consumer loans with a fixed term and variable interest rate decreased by 51 basis points and amounted to 12.10%, ewhile the average interest rate on variable rate mortgages remained almost unchanged at 5.08%.

The average interest rate on business loans without a fixed term was unchanged at 6.87%. The corresponding interest rate on business loans remained almost unchanged at 7.80%.

The average interest rate on new fixed-term and variable-rate business loans decreased by 26 basis points in December 2023 to 5.78%. The average interest rate on regular maturity loans with a variable interest rate to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) decreased by 28 basis points and stood at 5.95%.

Regarding the structure of interest rates in terms of the amount of the loan, it is noted that the average interest rate for loans up to 250,000 euros remained almost unchanged at 5.77%, for loans from 250,001 to 1 million euros it decreased by 14 basis points to 6.01%, while for loans over 1 million euros it decreased by 27 basis points to 5.77% .