Daily Market Update 12/2/08

Mortgage rates inched higher Tuesday in early trading, but remained close to their lows for the year. Stocks prices recovered somewhat from Monday's sharp sell off. 10-year Treasury yields dropped to 2.69%, the lowest level since 1955. Yesterday Treasury Secretary Paulson said that even though the government has "essentially guaranteed" Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac securities, mortgage rates have not come down "as much as we may have hoped". No economic data will be released today.

Daily Market Update 12/1/08

Mortgage rates fell again Monday as stocks moved lower. In economic news, the ISM Manufacturing Index reported the sharpest decline in new orders for manufactured goods in 26 years. Construction Spending fell 1.2% last month, greater than expected. Traders will be closely watching this Friday's release of Non-farm Payrolls data for November.

Daily Market Update 11/28/08

Mortgage rates were little changed Friday in a shortened session. The mortgage-backed securities market will close at 2:00 PM et. Stocks were mixed. No major economic reports are due out today.

Daily Market Update 11/26/08

Mortgage rates improved slightly Wednesday after having risen Tuesday afternoon. Rates improved dramatically yesterday morning following the Fed's announcement of plans to purchase mortgage-backed securities directly from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Durable Goods Orders plummeted 6.2% in October, far greater than expected. President-elect Obama tapped former Fed Chief Paul Volcker to head a special economic advisory board. Volcker is highly regarded in the financial markets and by both major political parties. Bond markets will close at 2:00 PM today for the Thanksgiving Holiday.

Daily Market Update 11/25/08

Mortgage rates fell sharply Tuesday as the Fed and Treasury announced a new program to purchase up to $500 billion in mortgage-backed securities from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. This was the original proposal for the $700 billion TARP rescue, but the uses of the funds shifted before any mortgages were purchased. The goal of the new program is to lower mortgage interest rates. In other economic news, today's downward Gross Domestic Product revision matched consensus and had little impact. Stocks moved higher.

Daily Market Update 11/24/08

Mortgage rates were little changed Monday while Treasury rates moved higher. Stock markets have reacted favorably to the selection of several key positions within President-elect Obama's economic team, among them Timothy Geithner as Treasury Secretary, Lawrence Summers to head the National Economic Council, and Bill Richardson as Commerce Secretary. The government announced plans yesterday to guarantee $306 billion of troubled assets held by Citigroup, one of the world's largest financial institutions. The National Association of Realtors reported sales of existing homes fell 3.1% last month, more than expected. The median price fell 11.3% from the same period last year reflecting a large number of foreclosures and distressed sales. Key economic reports due out this week include tomorrow's release of revised third quarter GDP figures and Wednesday's Durable Goods Orders.

Daily Market Update 11/21/08

Mortgage rates inched higher Friday as stocks attempted to recover from steep losses earlier in the week. Treasury markets continued to out-perform mortgages, with yesterday's yield on the 10-year Treasury hitting 2.99%, the lowest level since 1962. The unusually wide spread between Treasury and mortgage rates is resulting from uncertainty among traders over the government's plan for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Fannie and Freddie both announced yesterday they would suspend certain foreclosures until 1/9/09 in an effort to restructure borrowers' payments. Rates are likely to remain volatile next week, with several key economic reports due out before the Thanksgiving Holiday.