Mortgage rates sink to a 13th record low of the year, with disappointing retail sales figures and a spike in new COVID-19 cases weighing.
Mortgage rates fell for the 2nd time in 4-weeks in the week ending 19th November. Reversing a 6 basis point rise from the week prior, the 30-year fixed-rate slid by 12 basis points.
Compared to this time last year, 30-year fixed rates were down by 94 basis points.
30-year fixed rates were down by 222 basis points since November 2018’s most recent peak of 4.94%.
Economic data was on the busier side in the 1st half of the week.
Key stats included New York Empire State Manufacturing numbers, retail sales, and industrial production figures.
The stats were skewed to the negative, with retail sales and manufacturing numbers disappointing.
Industrial production figures did come out ahead of forecasts but were not enough to support yields.
From the housing sector building permit and housing start numbers for October also had a muted impact on market risk sentiment.
A reintroduction of containment measures to curb the surge in the number of new COVID-19 cases also weighed. Progress towards a COVID-19 vaccine provided some cushioning in the week, however.
The weekly average rates for new mortgages as of 19th November were quoted by Freddie Mac to be:
According to Freddie Mac,
For the week ending 13th November, rates were quoted to be:
Weekly figures released by the Mortgage Bankers Association showed that the Market Composite Index, which is a measure of mortgage loan application volume, slipped by 0.3% in the week ending 13th November. In the week prior, the Index had fallen by 0.5%.
The Refinance Index decreased by 2% but was 98% higher than the same week a year ago. In the week prior, the index had risen by 1%.
The refinance share of mortgage activity fell from 70.0% to 69.8%. In the week prior, the share had risen from 68.7% to 70.0%.
According to the MBA,
It’s a particularly busy 1st half of a shortened week on the U.S economic calendar.
Key stats include prelim private sector PMIs, consumer confidence, durable goods, and weekly jobless claims figures.
Trade data, 2nd estimate GDP numbers, and inflation and consumer sentiment figures are also due out.
Away from the economic calendar, U.S politics, COVID-19 news updates, and Brexit will continue to influence.
With over 20 years of experience in the finance industry, Bob has been managing regional teams across Europe and Asia and focusing on analytics across both corporate and financial institutions. Currently he is covering developments relating to the financial markets, including currencies, commodities, alternative asset classes, and global equities.