Kenneth Bargers Blog

Monday Morning Market Comment for November 23, 2009

MARKET COMMENT
Mortgage bond prices rose last week pushing mortgage interest rates lower. Mixed data resulted in up and down trading but within a relatively narrow range. Things were going well the first part of the week with rates improving until Wednesday when the consumer price index and the core came in higher than expected. Inflation, real or perceived, erodes the value of fixed income investments causing prices to fall and rates to rise. We saw some of that mid-week. Despite this, interest rates finished the week improved by about 1/8 to 1/4 of a discount point.

The US Treasury will continue the record Treasury auctions with a $44 billion 2-year note auction Monday, $42 billion 5-year note auction Tuesday, and a $45 billion 7-year note auction Wednesday. The bond market will be closed Thursday for Thanksgiving and will have a shortened trading session Friday.

PRELIMINARY GDP
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. The preliminary third quarter gross domestic product data this week has the potential to move mortgage interest rates. Be cautious.

Source: courtesy of Todd Kabel, US Bank, Nashville, Tennessee

November 23, 2009 - Posted by kbargers | economy, real estate | bonds, economy, gdp, gross domestic product, kenneth bargers, market report, mortgage bond prices, mortgage rates, Nashville, realtor, tennessee, todd kabel, us bank, us treasury