U.S. rates on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages climbed up this week for the sixth consecutive week to their highest level in nearly four years, mortgage giant Freddie Mac reported Thursday in its weekly nationwide survey.

In the week ending May 4, rates on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages averaged 6.59 percent, slightly up from 6.58 percent last week, according to the survey.

This week's rate was the highest point since the week to June 20, 2002, when 30-year mortgage rates stood at 6.63 percent.

The survey also showed that rates on 15-year, fixed-rate mortgages, a popular choice for refinancing a home mortgage, nudged up to 6.22 percent from 6.21 percent last week.

One-year adjustable rate mortgages (ARMs), however, decreased to 5.67 percent this week from 5.68 percent. Rates on five-year, hybrid adjustable-rate mortgages averaged 6.21 percent this week, unchanged from last week.

A year ago, 30-year mortgages averaged 5.75 percent while rates on 15-year mortgages stood at 5.31 percent, one-year ARMs at 4.22 percent and five-year ARMs at 5.16 percent.

"We expect that the mortgage rates will continue to trend upward over the coming year but that upward trend will be modest at best," Freddie Mac's chief economist Frank Nothaft said.

Source: Xinhua