Govt slashes profit rates by up to 100 bps

May 21, 2025 (MLN): The Directorate of National Savings has revised profit rates across various National Savings Schemes (NSS), slashing profit rates by up to 100 basis points with effect from May 21, 2025.

The most significant cut came in the Saving Account (SA), where returns were slashed by 100 basis points from 10.5% to 9.5%. Meanwhile, the Special Savings Certificates (SSC) and Special Savings Accounts (SSA) saw a 30 basis point reduction, bringing the new rate to 10.90%.

Regular Income Certificates (RIC) faced an 18 basis point cut, now offering 11.52%.

Furthermore, Defence Savings Certificates (DSC) saw a 21 basis point drop to 11.91%, while Bahbood Savings Certificates (BSC), Pensioner Benefit Account (PBA), and Shuhada Family Welfare Account (SFWA) were all reduced by 24 basis points, now yielding at 13.44%.

The Sarwa Islamic Term Account (SITA) was not spared either, with its return lowered to 10.34%, down from 10.44%.

Lately, the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) decided to cut the policy rate by 100 bps to 11% to reduce borrowing costs and stimulate economic activity.

However, with lower NSS returns, fixed-income investors, especially pensioners and low-risk savers, will likely seek alternative investment options like equities, corporate bonds, or real estate to preserve returns.

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