Reserve Bank likely to keep repo rate unchanged
The Reserve Bank is widely expected to keep the repo rate unchanged when it makes its announcement on Thursday.
This means indebted consumers will continue paying the same for their debt instalments, while those with savings, will continue earning the same interest rate.
The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) cut rates by 25 basis points at their November meeting.
It will be announcing its first decision of the year on Thursday, with economists expecting the central bank to keep the rate unchanged at 6.75%, meaning the prime lending rate will remain at 10.5%.
The MPC is trying to drive inflation closer to its new target of 3% in an uncertain environment.
Annual consumer price inflation was 3.6% in December, up from 3.5% in November.
Investec Chief economist Annabel Bishop says she expects the next move in the repo rate to be in March this year, with a 25 basis points cut as inflation is expected to decelerate.