Reason why mortgage rates at Barclays, Halifax and NatWest have risen this week

rates are rising again - with two more major lenders hiking rates today.

and have today increased rates on various home loan deals. This follows NatWest, , and who also hiked rates this week. Several of Barclays fixed rate deals increased by 0.2 percentage points, with its second five-year fix rising to 3.96%.

The lender's market leading deal of 3.85% deal also rose to 4.05% today. The lender's two year fixes have also gone up with its lowest fix rising from 3.9% to 4.1%. Halifax soon followed Barclays by announcing increases to its two and five year fixes by between 0.11 and 0.24 percentage points. The moves mean Santander and Nationwide are the only lenders offering two-year fixes below 4%.

Mortgage rates had been falling as lenders anticipated a cut to the Bank of England base interest rate. This finally happened in August when the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) cut the rate from 5.25% to 5%. But the reason for them creeping up again is down to swap rates, which are influenced by future interest rate expectations.

When swap rates rise, mortgage rates tend to increase, and vice versa when they fall. As of October 14, five-year swaps were at 3.8% and two-year swaps were at 4.02%. This was an increase from the month before, when they were at 3.39% and 3.73%, respectively. According to mortgage experts, the rise in swaps means there is "little to no margin" for lenders to make money, which is why some have to re-price higher.

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Nicholas Mendes, Mortgage Technical Manager, at John Charcol noted that lenders had "responded swiftly" to the changing market dynamics and the "proactive approach" helps them secure their positions in the competitive landscape.

But since then, the UK's inflation figure has dropped from 2.2% to 1.7% - so below the Bank of England's target of 2% which indicates a further cut next month. As a result, swap rates have dropped again which in turn will likely lead to falls in mortgage rates.

Although mortgage experts have noted that the upcoming budget at the end of this month is also a factor in lender's decisions with many experts describing the industry as a "non-stop rollercoaster". Harps Garcha, Director at Brooklyn Financial, said that the "recent weeks have underscored the turbulent ride in the mortgage market" but noted that it "is far from over". They added: "Ongoing global unpredictability suggests this volatility will persist in the foreseeable future."

Craig Fish, Director at Lodestone Mortgages & Protection added: "Nothing to see here! Just a temporary blip on the rate landscape following the recent increase in swap rates. Normal service has now resumed, swap rates are on the decline again, and lender rates will likely follow in the coming days and weeks, assuming there are no bloopers in the budget."

Ben Perks, Managing Director at Orchard Financial Advisers noted: "Rates are rising, but optimism within the industry this week is higher than ever. With the inflation now at 1.7% the pressure on the Bank of England is becoming insurmountable. Whilst seeing increasing rates isn’t great, I’m optimistic that this is a short-term blip, and just lenders applying caution ahead of the Autumn budget."

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