BEIJING / RankWire.AI / – China has kept its benchmark lending rates unchanged throughout September, prolonging a period of stable borrowing costs. The one-year loan prime rate stayed at 3.0%, and the over-five-year rate remained at 3.5%. Banks typically reference the longer-term benchmark for mortgage pricing. The September fixing maintained both rates at the same levels observed in August, which continue to be fundamental in loan pricing across China’s banking sector.
The People’s Bank of China manages the framework for setting the loan prime rate. The monthly fixing is published by the National Interbank Funding Center. The one-year LPR acts as a reference for a wide range of business and household loans, while the over-five-year LPR plays a key role in mortgage calculations and other long-term borrowings. The decision in September left these lending benchmarks unchanged across both principal maturities.
The unchanged LPR figures coincide with new data on inflation, credit, and the property sector. In August, China’s consumer price index increased by 0.8% year-on-year, and prices rose by 0.4% compared to July. These numbers offer the latest insight into consumer inflation. The rate decision also follows recent housing and financing data covering activity through the first eight months of 2026.
Mortgage benchmark remains at 3.5%
Housing market data in August showed varied trends across China’s largest cities. New home prices in first-tier cities increased by 0.1% from July, with Shanghai experiencing a 0.4% rise. Guangzhou prices gained 0.1%, Shenzhen increased by 0.2%, and Beijing saw a 0.2% decline that month. These figures reflect uneven price movements among the country’s top property markets.
Property investment from January to August totaled 4.798 trillion yuan, representing a 19.9% decrease compared to the previous year. Residential investments declined by 19.7%, reaching 3.702 trillion yuan. Sales of newly built commercial properties amounted to 4.747 trillion yuan, down 13.0%. The property market remains tightly linked to the over-five-year LPR because lenders base many mortgage terms on that rate.
Recent credit and housing figures influence September’s rate decision
In the first eight months of 2026, new commercial property sales covered 498.8 million square meters, reflecting a 12.1% annual decline. Residential sales area decreased by 13.0%, and residential sales value fell by 13.1%. Property developers’ individual mortgage loans totaled 684.6 billion yuan, which is 22.4% lower than a year earlier. These figures provide additional context for the conditions surrounding housing borrowing.
China’s total social financing reached 464.8 trillion yuan at the end of August, marking a 7.2% increase from the previous year. Loans to the real economy in renminbi amounted to 278.63 trillion yuan, up 5.0%. Government bonds within total social financing reached 103.69 trillion yuan, an increase of 13.5%. Against this background, the People’s Bank of China decided to keep the one-year LPR at 3.0% and the over-five-year rate at 3.5%.