Many are waiting in angst ahead of another potential interest rate hike. The South African Reserve Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee is set to meet this week, and make a decision on the interest rate on Thursday. Another climb in the rate will signal bad news for homeowners and others with loans.

The repo rate has remained at 8.25% for the last two MPC meetings.

Efficient Group’s Chief Economist, Dawie Roodt predicts the reserve bank will leave the interest rate unchanged:

“Most economists expect the Reserve Bank to leave interest rates unchanged, and I concur with that, especially after the Americans decided to keep interest rates unchanged. What the next move on interest rates will be, will really depend on things like the exchange rate of the Rand, and the international oil price. On both fronts we’ve got some good news,” says Roodt.

Roodt is confident that South Africans will get some much-needed reprieve next year.

“I think even the next move by the Reserve Bank will be no change to interest rates. With a bit of luck, we will actually start to see interest rates coming down somewhere in the first 6 months of next year or so. But for now, expect the reserve bank to sit on their hands,” concludes Roodt.

READ MORE: Interest rates: Short term pain for long term gain?