Because you got 'em! Economic data continues to disappoint and cause concern for the market. Consumers are being hit by inflation and thus not spending any more money. A survey of the manufacturing sector also reported dismally low. Remember that a weak consumer, and a weak manufacturing sector are two of the many signs that point to more economic slow down. A slow economy tends to lead investors to buy bonds. And since mortgage rates are tied to Mortgage Backed Bonds, a slow economy is generally

Mortgage rates should improve slightly again this morning adding to the improvements from yesterday. All of the major scheduled economic reports for today, Durable Goods, Loan Applications, and Home Sales, were weaker than expected. Remember that weak data tends to push investors to buy bonds such as Mortgage Backed Securities. When investors buy these bonds, the mortgage rates get better. It's a volatile morning because in addition to the economic data there are numerous headlines from Wall Street

Buckle in for another bumpy ride this week! On Friday, news that AMBAC, a major bond insurer, would receive a bailout caused mortgage rates to rise sharply. The only economic report for today, Existing Home Sales, came in slightly higher than expected. Even though the sales and prices trends continue downward, the analysts expect certain levels. The markets trade on these expectations preemptively so when the results differ from expectations the markets adjust. If, like today, the data was slight

There is no data set to release today in terms of economic reports. Wal-Mart released earnings higher than expected which is adding to some mild stock gains this morning. As such, bonds, including mortgage backed securities are unchanged to slightly worse. Thursday and Friday were such horrible days for rates that they are resisting moving too much higher today despite continuing fears of inflation. The environment of the immediate future is very unfriendly to bonds. Market sentiment has turned abruptly

If your loan is already locked, I would be very thankful! We've had a very bad tumble in the past two days. As we've discussed previously, the week has been pretty light in terms of scheduled released economic reports. Instead, the market is getting much more stimulus from news, announcements, and most importantly today, Bernanke's testimony in front of congress that is currently still in process. Jobless claims came in today almost exactly as expected. The trade deficit shrunk somewhat, but traders

There are no significant economic reports scheduled for release today. In general market news, AIG (American International Group) announced a larger than expected write down which is one of the factors leading to generally tepid stocks this morning. The Dow is currently down about 30 points. Mortgage Backed securities, the securities that directly drive mortgage rates are better by a very small margin, but should not lead to any improved pricing over Friday. With no data being released, we will watch