The European Central Bank has raised interest rates by a further 25 basis points to 3.25% and signalled that more increases would be needed to tame inflation.
The latest rise comes on the back of six previous rate increases which have seen annual mortgage repayments skyrocket for those on variable or tracker mortgages.
The ECB has now lifted rates by a combined 375 basis points since last July, its fastest pace of tightening, but further action is still likely given mounting wage and price pressures.
The latest hike, a slowdown after three consecutive 50 basis point increases, comes only days after Euro zone banking data showed the biggest drop in loan demand in over a decade. That suggests previous rate rises are working their way through the economy and that ECB policies are now restricting growth.
Despite this the bank refused to rule out further rises in the coming months.
"We are not pausing - that is very clear," ECB President Christine Lagarde told a press conference.
"We know that we have more ground to cover."
Ms Lagarde said there were still big upside risks to inflation, notably from recent wage deals and high corporate profit margins, and that financial conditions were still not sufficiently tight.
She noted that the bank's written statement made reference to future "policy decisions" in the plural, possibly suggesting more than one further hike.
Earlier, Minister for Finance Michael McGrath said there was a "concern" that rising interest rates could lead to an increase in mortgage arrears in Ireland.
