Rising interest rates and their impact on mortgages in an open economy like Singapore

WITH interest rates coming off record lows, mortgage brokers are advising prospective homeowners and those looking to refinance to lock down fixed rates - where they are still hovering around a fairly low range - before the gap between fixed- and floating-rate financing widens.

The US Federal Reserve said on Wednesday it would double the pace at which it is scaling back bond purchases in its fight against inflation, with a majority of its members forecasting 3 interest rate hikes by the end of next year.

For an open economy like Singapore, domestic interest rates are largely influenced by global market movements, and especially by US rates. They can thus be expected to rise, going forward.