Britain's biggest mortgage lenders have pushed through a new round of rate rises on fixed-rate mortgages, as rising UK inflation, higher oil prices and a global bond market sell-off rattled markets. Santander, HSBC, Nationwide, Lloyds, Halifax, Barclays and TSB raised rates this week by as much as 0.3 percentage points, driving up costs for borrowers and threatening to weigh on housing market activity as the autumn buying season gets under way. It was the second time Nationwide raised rates in a week, adding 0.2 percentage points to a selection of its deals on 9 September before adding up to 0.3 percentage points to a range of products on Tuesday.

TSB also launched higher rates on Tuesday, only to announce it would be putting them up again on 17 September. Other lenders have also put through two rounds of rate rises. Aaron Strutt, product director at broker Trinity Financial, said: "It seems likely there will be more to come.

It's never good when a lender's new rates are live for a day and then they are pushed up again." The Bank of England chose to hold the base rate at 3.75 per cent on Thursday, but with UK inflation rising to 3.1 per cent in August, the expectation of a rate rise coming later in the year has increased. Swap rates, which lenders use to guide their pricing of fixed-rate loans, rose on Monday to 4.8 per cent on the two-year overnight rate and 4.84 per cent on the five-year rate, before falling back on Thursday to 4.58 per cent and 4.63 per cent respectively. According to finance site Moneyfacts, the average two-year fixed mortgage rate is at its highest point since June and the average five-year fixed rate has returned to levels not seen since April.

Rachel Springall, personal finance expert at Moneyfacts, said: "It is highly likely other lenders will follow suit to adjust rates, and with some deals withdrawn from the market, it is expected any returning deals could well be priced higher." She added that borrowers who are not yet eligible to apply for an existing rate may lose out, such as those with a cheap five-year fix who are not due to refinance until 2027. "Back in February 2022, there were sub-2 per cent fixed mortgages available, so moving off this rate will be a huge shock for borrowers," she said. Brokers said some clients had hit the brakes on their purchase or refinancing plans as rates have risen in recent days. Simon Gammon, managing partner at mortgage broker Knight Frank Finance, said: "In my experience, a mortgage rate of 4 per cent or below is affordable for most people.

Once it gets to 4.5 per cent, it starts to open up questions around whether people really want to do it or not. And that's where the market is right now, with lenders coming out saying we're putting rates up." Recommended UK house prices London homebuyers need an extra £35,500 in deposit to make up for mortgage rate rises He added that speculation over the prospect of Bank of England rate rises had unsettled markets. "I can't see mortgage rates coming down this side of Christmas," he said. It marks the latest sign of a shift in sentiment since January, when borrowers were anticipating further cuts in interest rates over the course of the year. "Markets are becoming increasingly sensitive to signs that inflation could prove more stubborn than expected, particularly given ongoing geopolitical uncertainty and higher fuel and energy prices," said David Hollingworth, director at broker L&C Mortgages. "Jittery markets could mean further tremors for mortgage rates.".