Economy · Chart
South Africa’s interest rate has been about three points higher than America’s since 2019
4.75percentage points 2019 · Highest
The gap was widest in 2019 at 4.75 points and narrowest in 2022 at 2.50. In May 2026 it is 3.25 points.
From our storiesThe Reserve Bank just raised rates. Here is why that was a difficult decisionRead the full story →
Method and sources
Each bar is the difference between the South African repo rate and the United States policy rate, in percentage points, as printed on the article's chart. Values are year-end, with 2026 as at May.
2019: 4.75. 2020: 3.25. 2021: 3.50. 2022: 2.50. 2023: 2.75. 2024: 3.25. 2025: 3.00. 2026: 3.25.
The article puts the average gap at 3.3 points. Each bar is dated to its year, so the period runs from 1 January 2019 to 31 May 2026.
Sources: South African Reserve Bank and the US Federal Reserve, via the South African Reserve Bank (https://www.resbank.co.za/) The link is to one of the publishers, not the exact table.
Figures as published in our article on the May 2026 repo rate rise (chart last checked 14 September 2026): the difference in year-end policy rates, 2026 as at May.
Chart updated · 18 Oct 2026. The observation dates above describe the data, not today’s conditions.
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