Westpac cuts floating and 6 month rates

Westpac announced it would cut its floating mortgage rate by 40 basis points to 6.49%, effective February 26; and its 6-month fixed rate by 20 basis points to 5.79%, effective February 23. The new 6-month fixed rate cut brings it into line with the bank's 1-year rate. These cuts follow on from Kiwibank's announcement earlier that it was cutting its variable mortgage rate to 5.99% - the lowest variable rate offered by a New Zealand bank since 1965. Westpac's new 6-month rate is still 10 basis points above the market leader, BNZ. To compare mortgage rates offered by New Zealand lending institutions, see here.