Premier Mortgage Group

Mortgage interest rates improved slightly again this past week on mixed economic data.  Economic data weaker than expected and supporting lower interest rates included weekly jobless claims and the Philadelphia Fed Business Index.  Weekly jobless claims were expected to fall by 9k but instead increased by 12k.  The August Philadelphia Fed Business Index was expected at +7.5 but actually came in at negative 7.7.  Any reading below zero indicates contraction.  Also of note, July Housing Starts increased but not as much as expected.  July Building Permits fell 3.1% on expectations that they would fall by 2.3%.  On a positive note July Industrial Production and Capacity Utilization were both better than expected.  The July Producer Price Index (PPI) was in line with expectations.  Core PPI, excluding the food and energy components, was up 0.3% on expectations that it would be up 0.1%.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average is currently at 10,166, down about 130 points on the week.  Crude Oil Futures are currently trading at $73.59 per barrel, down about $2 per barrel on the week.  The Dollar strengthened versus the Euro and weakened versus the Yen on the week.

Next week look toward Tuesday’s Existing Home Sales, Wednesday’s Durable Goods Orders, Thursday’s weekly jobless claims, and Friday’s second look at Q2 GDP as potential market moving events.

Posted in Industry & Market News, Weekly Update