No relief for Irish borrowers as Lagarde insists talk of ECB rate cut 'totally premature'

Mortgage brokers say any rate reduction next year will not come in time to help the 70,000 Irish households whose fixed-rate mortgages expire at the end of this year

ECB president Christine Lagarde indicated rates would be held at current levels for some time. Picture: PA

The European Central Bank has kept interest rates unchanged, but there appears to be no early lifting of the financial pain for Irish households and businesses as the bank insisted that any discussion of cutting rates had not even started.    

ECB president Christine Lagarde indicated rates would be held at current levels for some time, saying that any debate on rate reductions was "totally, totally premature".