Home-Owners worried by scare headlines a few months ago about a further rise in interest rates can relax. For the moment at least. Events on the currency markets have led to a slight easing in interest rates on the wholesale money market, where the key one month rate is now below 6.25 per cent. Markets analysts now reckon that the pound is so strong in the ERM band that no matter how concerned the Central Bank might be about inflation, it cannot announce an early rise in borrowing costs. Borrowers on floating rates have, of course, recently seen an increase of around half a point in the interest rates, following the increase in the Bank's official rate earlier this year. So should new borrowers opt for fixed or floating rates? It's a close call at the moment. If monetary union goes ahead on schedule on January 1st, 1999, then interest rates here should ease back to mainstream EU levels. Even if rates elsewhere in Europe rise in the meantime, this should lead to some decline in Irish rates or at worst no change from the current position. But monetary union is still 18 months away and any turbulence on the markets could still see rates rise in the meantime.