The bank council of the Czech National Bank voted unanimously to raise interest rates by 0.25 percent on Thursday, bringing the basic rate to 2 percent. That’s the highest it’s been in ten years, but it’s unlikely to have an immediate impact on the mortgage rates banks offer their customers. The Czech News Agency reported that the first bank to respond the changewas Banka Credital, which raised rates on its savings accounts by 0.2 percent. The CNB was expected to raise rates after Q1 inflation numbers came in higher than expected. At the same time, the bank downgraded its expectations for GDP growth this year from 2.9 percent to 2.5 percent, while the prospects for 2020 fell from 3 percent to 2.8 percent.
