Spain’s mortgage holders are being hit again after the Euribor recorded its biggest monthly jump since late 2022.

The key rate, used to calculate most variable mortgages, ended March at 2.565%, climbing more than three tenths in just one month.

The spike has been driven largely by global instability, particularly the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, which has pushed up expectations around inflation and interest rates.

At the start of March, the Euribor sat just above 2.2% on a daily basis.

By the end of the month, it had surged to 2.9%, signalling further increases ahead.

For a typical mortgage of €150,000 over 25 years (with interest set at Euribor +1%), monthly repayments are now rising to around €757.

That equates to around €13 more per month or around €160 extra per year, in what could be just the beginning if the rate continues to rise.

The surge is also fuelling expectations that the European Central Bank will raise interest rates again.

Its president, Christine Lagarde, has already warned that policymakers will not hesitate to act.

‘We will not stand still because our commitment to achieving 2% inflation is unconditional,’ she said.

The ECB meets again at the end of April, with markets increasingly pricing in tighter borrowing conditions.

Elsewhere, fresh data from Eurostat shows inflation in the eurozone has climbed to 2.5%, once again exceeding the ECB’s 2% target.

That makes further rate hikes more likely, in what could spell bad news for anyone with a variable mortgage.

It means borrowing is getting more expensive again and unless inflation cools quickly, mortgage pain could deepen in the months ahead.

Read more Andalucia news at the Spanish Eye.