IL&P rules out rate hikes before year-end

Irish Life and Permanent has ruled out any further interest rate hikes for its customers this year.

The group, which owns Permanent TSB, is reporting operating losses of €10m for the six months to June.

Meanwhile Irish Nationwide is reportedly set to raise its standard variable rates by .54% tomorrow, adding around €30 per month to a €100,000 mortgage.

ILP Group Chief Executive Kevin Murphy said the three rate hikes the bank imposed this year were sufficient for the moment, and that the bank was confident no further increases would be imposed this year, but added that rate increases were driven by international factors.

"The reason variable rates have been rising is that the cost of funding has been going up for Irish banks around the world, so it depends how that works out for the rest of the year," he said.