Halifax hikes mortgage rates amid credit crunch

By Jennifer Hill

LONDON (Reuters) - Halifax said on Thursday it was increasing some of its mortgage rates in the wake of a global credit crunch.

The lender -- which accounts for a fifth of the mortgage market -- said it would raise rates on around 20 of its tracker mortgages by 10 to 20 basis points from Friday.

The move, which applies to new borrowers only, follows similar announcements by rival lenders.

"Like anyone else, we can't buck the market," a Halifax spokesman said. Halifax is part of HBOS HBOS.L.

"We've seen lenders move to increase their rates this week. Pricing has changed in the market so we've had to move and increase our rates too."

Abbey, the second-biggest lender, increased the rate it charges some new tracker mortgage customers by the same amount on Thursday.

Standard Life Bank (SL.L) expects to unveil increases in its tracker, discounted and fixed rate home loans on Friday.

Movements in borrowing and savings rates are usually tied into changes in official interest rates.