Market Comment
Mortgage bond prices finished the week weaker pushing mortgage interest rates higher.The negative trend started Tuesday following Fitch’s downgrade of Japan’s debt.This spooked the markets a bit as traders feared additional debt downgrades could hit unexpected countries.The negative movement was reversed temporarily Wednesday as continued speculation regarding Greece leaving the euro dominated the news.Unfortunately that wasn’t enough to erase the earlier losses.
Most of the news came in near estimates and as a result did not move trading much.Mortgage interest rates finished the week worse by about 3/8 of a discount point.
LOOKING AHEAD
Economic Indicator
|
Release Date & Time
|
Consensus Estimate
|
Analysis
|
Consumer Confidence |
Tuesday, May 29, 10:00 am, et
|
69.8 |
Important.An indication of consumers’ willingness to spend.Weakness may lead to lower mortgage rates. |
ADP Employment |
Thursday, May 31, 8:30 am, et
|
135k |
Important.An indication of employment.Weakness may bring lower rates. |
Weekly Jobless Claims |
Thursday, May 31, 8:30 am, et
|
370k |
Important.An indication of employment.Higher claims may result in lower rates. |
Q1 GDP Second Estimate |
Thursday, May 31, 8:30 am, et
|
Up 2% |
Important.The aggregate measure of US economic production.Weakness may lead to lower rates. |
Employment |
Friday, June 1, 8:30 am, et
|
8.1%, Payrolls +135k
|
Very important.An increase in unemployment or weakness in payrolls may bring lower rates. |
Personal Income and Outlays |
Friday, June 1, 8:30 am, et
|
Up 0.2%, Up 0.1%
|
Important.A measure of consumers’ ability to spend.Weakness may lead to lower mortgage rates. |
PCE Core Inflation |
Friday, June 1, 8:30 am, et
|
Up 0.2% |
Important.A measure of price increases for all domestic personal consumption.Weaker figure may help rates improve. |
ISM Index |
Friday, June 1, 10:00 am, et |
54 |
Important.A measure of manufacturer sentiment.Weakness may lead to lower mortgage rates. |
Construction Spending |
Friday, June 1, 10:00 am, et |
Up 0.2% |
Low importance.An indication of economic strength.Significant weakness may lead to lower rates. |
Gross Domestic Product
The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is one the most important reports during any given quarter.GDP is a measure of US economic output and spending.The report is significant in that it provides investors, analysts, traders, and economists with a comprehensive report of the direction of the economy.In addition, it also influences the decisions of Federal Reserve policy makers, Congressional budget employees, and corporate financial planners.
GDP is the sum total of goods and services produced by the United States. The initial report is often based on incomplete data. Therefore, additional revisions are released over the following two months. There are often substantial differences between the initial release and the revisions. The mortgage-backed security market generally responds favorably to weaker GDP growth. While revisions generally don’t move the market like the original release, they still have the potential to cause market volatility.
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