Major US Banks Cut Benchmark Lending Rates Following Fed Decision

As of Aug. 1, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Citigroup and Wells Fargo & Co. all said they would reduce rates by 25 basis points to 5.25 percent, following the Fed's lead of reducing the prime lending rate to a range of 2 to 2.25 percent.

The US Federal Reserve cut the overnight lending rate in response to growing concerns over the global economy and lower than expected inflation in the US.

Banks are expected to lower commercial lending rates in line with the Fed. However, these reductions are notable because lending rates have been on an upward trend for more than a decade.

According to The New York Times, the last time JP Morgan reduced its prime rate was December 2008, when it cut the rate to 3.35 percent from 4.

Also, the SBA lending rate for its popular 504 program for business owners dropped below 4 percent (to an effective rate of 3.98 percent) for the first time in this program's history!