Sydney, April 25, 2026, 07:42 AEST
Westpac Banking Corp (WBC.AX) raised fixed home-loan rates by 15 basis points, or 0.15 percentage point, for the second time in three weeks, taking its lowest fixed owner-occupier offer to 6.29% as Australian banks brace for higher funding and inflation risk. Canstar data showed more than 90% of lenders had lifted at least one fixed rate since the Reserve Bank of Australia’s March decision, including Commonwealth Bank, Westpac, National Australia Bank and ANZ; Canstar’s Sally Tindall said, “Fixed rates are on the move again.” Canstar
The timing is awkward for borrowers. The RBA’s cash rate, the benchmark it uses to steer borrowing costs, sits at 4.10%, with the next update due at 2.30 p.m. on May 5, and the central bank has warned that sharply higher fuel prices linked to the Middle East conflict could add to inflation.
Westpac’s own rate table listed a two-year standard fixed owner-occupier loan at 6.59% a year, or 6.29% with its package and lower loan-to-value discount. Loan-to-value ratio, or LVR, is the loan amount as a share of the property’s value.
The bank also moved on deposits. Westpac’s 24-month online term deposit special offer stood at up to 5.20% a year, while the 12-month online offer stood at up to 5.10%; Savings.com.au reported Westpac had lifted a range of term deposit rates less than 24 hours after the mortgage move.
That cuts both ways. Higher deposit rates can help Westpac compete for customer funding, but higher mortgage rates test household budgets just as fuel and other cost pressures are feeding back into the inflation debate.
Westpac economists Justin Smirk and Luka Belobrajdic wrote on Friday that under a more severe conflict scenario, Brent crude was expected to average about $105 a barrel in the June quarter before easing later in the year. Their note said supply and shipping conditions remained tight, keeping risks tilted to the upside.
The rate move also lands before Westpac’s half-year results, scheduled for May 5. In an April 14 ASX release, the bank said the energy supply shock was expected to produce higher inflation and higher rates, creating a “more challenging environment for some customers”; it also flagged lower Treasury and Markets net interest margin, a higher credit impairment charge and a A$75 million hit tied to the RAMS mortgage portfolio sale.
Westpac shares closed at A$39.01 on Friday, down 0.28% for the session, after falling 0.71% on Thursday and 2.11% on Wednesday. Sydney trading was closed when this story was filed.
Separately, Westpac NZ pressed Meta over scam ads in New Zealand. Chief Executive Catherine McGrath said 64% of scam cases handled by the bank so far this year had originated on social media, up from 57% a year earlier, and said Meta was “not responding quickly or seriously enough.” 1News
The risk for Westpac is that the rate path breaks either way. If oil prices ease and the RBA pauses, new fixed-rate pricing may look heavy; if inflation proves sticky, borrowers face more pressure and the bank may need to keep adding provisions for weaker customers.
