RBC hikes fixed mortgage rates

The Royal Bank of Canada has increased the interest rate it charges on a host of fixed mortgage products.

On Tuesday, Canada's largest bank announced it is raising its posted rate on a number of fixed-rate mortgages by 0.25 per cent.

After the changes, the bank's benchmark five-year mortgage rate sits at 6.1 per cent.

As recently as the end of March, the bank moved to raise rates on a number of its lending products by 0.6 percentage points. Other major lenders quickly followed suit.

Before that, posted rates at Canada's largest banks hadn't moved since October.

This summer, the Bank of Canada is expected to begin raising its key lending rates, which tend to have more influence on short-term lending rates and variable-rate mortgages than they do on fixed-rate products.

The banks do offer special rates on mortgage products for certain customers, with many currently below the posted rates. But such rates can be changed, withdrawn or extended at any time, the bank says.