By Lara Holmes

The Central Bank of Costa Rica (BCCR) announced on February 14 a further increase in interest rates from their electronic deposits for terms between 60 and 360 days.

The change is an increase of 0.25 percentage points for all terms involved.

On 24 January was the first time this year that the BCCR made an adjustment to the fees paid by electronic deposit service on Direct Central. The second time was last February 7 when the increases were between 0.20 and 0.50 percentage points.

As of yesterday, the DEP060 (60 day term) will pay 5%, the DEP090 5.60%, the DEP180 6.75%, the DEP270 7.05% and 7.45% DEP360, all with increased 0.25 percentage points.

Yields of the rest remain unchanged. As on the previous occasion, the CA argued that the increase is due to lags in their rates compared to other investment instruments in the market.

The trend in the rise of interest was reflected in the last rate adjustment Basic Passive (TBP) which reached 9%, the highest percentage in just over two years. That level is valid until February 15, the date on which the Central will review this indicator.