WASHINGTON — Mortgage rates around the country crept up this week, although rates on 30-year mortgages still hovered close to their low for the year.

In its weekly survey, mortgage giant Freddie Mac reported yesterday that 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages averaged 6.17 percent for the week ending April 5.

That was up slightly from 6.16 percent last week. Even with the uptick, it was near the low for this year of 6.14 percent, set during the first two weeks of March.

Analysts said mortgage rates have been fairly stable in recent weeks as financial markets — which directly influence these rates — try to figure out the direction of the economy and inflation. "Mortgage rates have remained within a narrow band of 0.1 percentage points over every week in March," said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac's chief economist. "This relative stability is due to mixed economic data releases as to how strong the economy is and whether future inflation will recede."

Rates on 15-year, fixed-rate mortgages, a popular choice for refinancing, rose to 5.87 percent this week, up a notch from last week's 5.86 percent.

Five-year adjustable rate mortgages averaged 5.92 percent, compared with 5.88 percent last week. One-year adjustable mortgages edged up to 5.44 percent from 5.43 percent last week.