prime rate

noun

: an interest rate formally announced by a bank to be the lowest available at a particular time to its most credit-worthy customers

called also prime interest rate

Example Sentences

Recent Examples on the Web The best example is the prime rate. —

Rob Wile, NBC News, 16 June 2022 In order to support the struggling economy due to the harsh impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Canadian government applied corrective monetary policies by reducing the policy overnight interest rate to a record low of 0.25% in 2020 (which brought the prime rate for most banks to 2.45%). —

Reza Ghazi, Forbes, 15 June 2022 When the prime rate is low, banks and credit unions can offer some of the lowest interest rates on the market, but this can change when the Fed raises rates. —

Joe Camberato, Forbes, 22 Mar. 2023 The interest rates banks charge on their credit cards are tied to the prime rate, which is tightly linked to the Fed funds rate. —

Elisabeth Buchwald, USA TODAY, 12 Dec. 2013 As the prime rate has risen to 7.75%, the average credit card interest rate has risen from 14.6% in February 2022 to 23.4% last week, according to LendingTree. —

Jim Sergent, USA TODAY, 1 Feb. 2023 Those who don’t qualify for low-rate credit cards might be stuck paying higher interest on their balances, and the rates on their cards would rise as the prime rate does. —

Dallas News, 16 Mar. 2022 That’s because those rates are based in part on banks’ prime rate, which follows the Fed’s. —

Cora Lewis, Chicago Tribune, 15 Dec. 2022 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'prime rate.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.