The number of first-time buyers on the housing market grew substantially in the third quarter of the year, to 1,123 or 33% of all buyers. In the second quarter, first-time buyers numbered 789, or 26% of all buyers.

In the most recent market expectation survey, carried out two weeks ago, a majority of respondents considered the monetary policy stance too tight rather than too loose. This is quite a change - the majority has considered the stance too loose since January 2020.

Icelanders’ online spending generally peaks in November. This is largely due to the bargains and sales prevalent in November, such as Singles’ Day, Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

In order to compare terms on short-term loans, it’s not enough to look at the interest and interest rate only - we need to take the entire cost of borrowing into account, such as borrowing charges and payment fees. Loans that allow the borrower to spread payment across a longer period frequently offer terms that equal 30-40% annual interest. And that's a lot!

Landsbankinn recently launched a new feature in its app that allows customers to transfer funds from their bank accounts with other banks. This feature always requires customer approval. Landsbankinn is the first bank in Iceland to offer its customers the opportunity to carry out actions in other banks through its app.

After overheating in the aftermath of the Covid pandemic, the Icelandic economy has slowed down and it is clear that we will see considerably less growth this year compared to last year. High interest rate levels have curtailed demand, both private consumption and investment. Following a hefty inflation spike, the outlook is for slow disinflation over the coming months. We do not expect the Central Bank of Iceland to raise the policy rate further in the near future, nor do we expect to see rate cuts until the second quarter of 2024. We expect the policy rate to have come down to 4.25% at year-end 2026.

The exhibition Hringrás (e. cyclical) is a selection of works from Landsbankinn’s art collection. The exhibition explores a cycle of influence and inspiration through various media and across generations of artists. The chosen works reflect a focus on select artistic movements, namely abstract and geometric-abstract art, figurative and representational art, graphic art including etching and drawing, and surrealism. Hringrás provides a glimpse into the diversity and breadth of Landsbankinn's collection, across medium and context. 

Inflation, policy rate, inflation expectations and exchange rate. What do these concepts mean and why are they important?

A new macroeconomic forecast from Landsbankinn Economic Research expects to see 3.2% economic growth in 2023 and is considerably more optimistic than the department’s forecast from October 2022. One of the main reasons for optimism is the more positive outlook in the travel sector.

We want to warn our customers against cybercrime activity, especially attempts perpetrated through social media and messaging apps, which have been rampant of late.

Landsbankinn Economic Research forecasts 6.5% economic growth this year, record growth since 2007, only for considerable cooling to follow. Per the forecast, the policy rate will enter a rate-cutting cycle in the latter part of 2023 while inflation remains about 4% until 2025. Purchasing power looks set to contract by 0.4% this year but to pick up to the tune of 0.5% next year - a much slower increase than in recent year.

The summer months usually see an increase in attempted internet fraud. Scammers may be hoping that people on vacation are more likely to thoughtlessly click on links or fail to read text messages or e-mails carefully before responding to them.

In most cases, there is no need to visit a bank branch to utilise banking services as most main transactions and various services can be accessed using mobile phones or a computer. This is a summary of services that do not require bank visits or human contact.