National Savings ups long-term profit, trims short-term rates

State-run savings institution provides a variety of deposit schemes for individual savers

By Our Correspondent
March 23, 2024
An office of the National Savings can been in this undated picture. —APP/File
An office of the National Savings can been in this undated picture. —APP/File

KARACHI: National Savings announced on Friday that it had raised the profit rate on its savings schemes by 24 basis points (bps), while simultaneously reducing the rate on short-term savings certificates.

The state-run savings institution, which provides a variety of deposit schemes for individual savers, reported an increase in the profit rates for special savings accounts, pensioners' benefit accounts, regular income certificates, and Behbood savings certificates.

The new rate for the savings account, applicable to accounts where withdrawals are made through methods other than cheques, is effective from March 19.

Rates for Special Savings Certificates (SSC) have been increased by 20bps to 15.80 percent from 15.6 percent. Regular Income Certificates (RIC) will now offer a return of 14.76 percent, compared to the previous 14.64 percent, marking an increase of 12bps.

Similarly, rates for Behbood Savings Certificates (BSC), Pensioners Benefit Account (PBA), and Shuhadas Family Welfare Account (SFWA) have risen to 15.60 percent each, after an increase of 24bps.

The rates on Short Term Savings Certificates (STSC) have been reduced by 76bps to 19 percent. The rates on Defence Saving Certificates (DSC), Savings Account (SA), Sarwa Islamic Term Account (SITA), and Sarwa Islamic Saving Account (SISA) remained unchanged at 14.40 percent, 20.50 percent, 18.54 percent, and 20.50 percent, respectively.

The Central Directorate of National Savings has dispatched revised rate sheets to all regional offices, instructing that the existing stock of blank certificates will now be issued at the new rates, effective March 19, 2024.

The NSS rates are linked with Pakistan Investment Bonds (PIB) for medium and long-term instruments, and with Treasury bills (T-bills) for short-term securities. The revision in the rates of return on National Savings schemes followed the central bank's decision to maintain the key interest rate at 22 percent earlier this week, citing a projected decline in inflation in the coming months.