Last week was not a good one for the National Australia Bank Ltd (ASX: NAB) share price. Shares in the big four bank fell 1.1% lower on Friday to close the week down 1.3% at $27.89 per share.
Let's take a look at what's moving bank shares right now and what could lie ahead for NAB.
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Why the NAB share price is under pressure
Despite a disappointing week, there were no new price-sensitive announcements from the Aussie bank last week. That didn't stop investors from selling down and putting the NAB share price under pressure.
Interestingly, NAB's value was sliding even as the likes of Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) edged higher to close the week. However, there were reports of a key change from NAB late in the week.
NAB has reportedly decided to increase some of its fixed-rate home loan rates. The Aussie bank is set to increase its 3-year rate by 10 basis points (bps) to 2.18% with 4-year and 5-year rates up 25 bps and 30 bps to 2.49% and 2.79%, respectively.
According to RateCity.com.au research director Sally Tindall, the rate hikes are no surprise. It comes as banks try to balance competitive market rates with profitability looking ahead to the economic recovery.
Higher rates may mean fewer borrowers going to the bank compared to its peers. Furthermore, investors could be wary of banks that prematurely increase rates. But at the same time, they may also punish those banks that see their net interest margin (NIM) deteriorate.
The NAB share price was under pressure last week following the news, but what lies ahead?
What's next for NAB?
The big four banks don't operate on the same reporting cycle as most other ASX companies. This means investors will be watching closely ahead of NAB's full-year results release on 9 November.
As we saw last week, the state of the economy also looms large in 2021. Where the NAB share price is headed next could be determined by the re-opening of the Aussie economy post-COVID and other macro factors such as interest rates and the strength of the housing market.
