are exposed to more aggressive interest rate rises.
For a variable 25-year mortgage loan of 100,000 euros
($106,160), the monthly cost was 196 euros higher in February
than a year earlier, according to the Spanish consumer
association Asufin.
"We are the protectors of the euro, mortgages are not for
the ECB to decide," Lagarde told Spanish TV channel Antena 3
when asked about a recent proposal by the far-left junior ruling
coalition partner Unidas Podemos to cap mortgage loans and
moderate banks' profits.
"It is not our mission," she added.
In November, the government introduced mortgage relief
support for more than one million vulnerable households, but
Spanish parties are promising more help to woo voters ahead of
regional and national elections later this year.
Lagarde's remarks come at a time when the two biggest
Spanish banks Santander and BBVA have
reported record profits in 2022. But while lenders benefit
from higher rates on loans, Spanish banks have kept a lid on
increases in interest on deposits, pushing savers into
higher-yielding short-term government debt.
On Thursday, Lagarde said savers were right to expect
better remuneration for their deposits.
"If we deposit our savings and are prepared to leave them
there, negotiations should start between the customer and the
banker so that these savings are remunerated," Lagarde said.
Spanish one-year bank deposits paid on average 0.42% in
interest as of December, compared to the 1.34% euro zone
average, according to ECB data.
"Bank customers have to have this dialogue with bankers and
if not, switch banks," Lagarde said.
($1 = 0.9142 euros)
(Reporting by Jesús Aguado and Emma Pinedo in Madrid,
additional reporting by Francesco Canepa; editing by Tomasz
Janowski)
