Mortgage rates moved higher Wednesday up congressional leaders voted to avoid the "Fiscal Cliff".
Mortgage-backed securities (MBS) fell as investors bid up stock prices. Confidence among investors and consumers typically 
causes mortgage rates to rise. That's what happened Wednesday.
For Thursday and Friday, expect jobs data to dictate where Minneapolis mortgage rates are headed.
The Federal Reserve has said that the national Unemployment Rate will dictate future monetary policy, with the central banker planning to raise the Fed Funds Rate from its target range near zero percent once joblessness falls to 6.5%. Currently, the jobless rate is 7.7 percent.
As the jobs market improves, equity markets should follow, causing mortgage rates to -- again -- move higher.
Thursday's Initial Jobless Claims report has already influenced today's mortgage rates. Newclaims rose 10,000 to 372,000 for the week ending December 29, 2012. This is slightly higher than Wall Street expected and mortgage bonds are moving better on the news.
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