The first of two key labor market reports was released this morning showing that employers in the private sector added fewer workers than expected, but still at solid levels. Payroll processor ADP reported on Wednesday that there were 178,000 new workers added in May, just below the 183,000 expected while April was revised lower to 163,000 from 204,000. The pool of people who can't find jobs could be dwindling as the labor market tightens, making it tougher to find new workers.
Economic growth was steady in the first quarter of this year though down from what was reported in the fourth quarter of 2017. The Bureau of Economic Analysis reports that the second reading on first quarter Gross Domestic Product (GDP) rose 2.2%, just below the initial reading of 2.3% and down from 2.9% registered in the final quarter of 2017. Lower consumer spending along with downward revisions to inventories led GDP lower.
The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) reports that mortgage rates edged lower in the latest week after moving higher for much of 2018. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage fell to 4.84% from 4.86% in the latest week with points decreasing to 0.47 from 0.52. Within the report it showed that the MBAs Market Composite Index, a measure of total mortgage loan application volume, fell 2.9%. In addition, the refinance index declined 5% while the purchase index fell 2%.
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