World Economy

The global economy has a big impact on finances in the United States. China's over-inflated stock market has taken a beating recently, causing concern among other global markets in this inter-connected world.

Mortgage rates fell last week as China’s equity market continued to spiral downward. U.S. Treasuries briefly dipped below 2.0% on Friday as investors moved to the security of fixed income assets.

With a rather quiet beginning to the week in terms of domestic economic news, all eyes will be focused on the equity markets to see if last week’s volatility and sell off continues. While U.S. markets were closed Monday, China’s equities were up about 0.7% late in their trading day, before selling off in the last 30 minutes and ending the day almost unchanged. If the global sell off in equities and commodities continues, look for pressure on the Fed to revise their thinking about the number of rate hikes this year.

 Here is a link to another great article explaining the link between interest rates, bonds, and mortgage rates:
http://www.cnbc.com/2016/01/07/lock-in-now-stock-sell-off-sinks-mortgage-rates.html

Happy Investing!

Today's blog courtesy of Sarah Riley, Caliber Home Loans

Market Turmoil

What just happened in China? The drop in stock prices in China set off financial tremors around the globe. How will it impact mortgages here?

Mortgage rates are set to open lower in 2016, with stock markets selling off around the world, creating demand for the safe-half of U.S. Treasuries and other fixed income assets. The drop in global stocks overnight was triggered by slowing manufacturing in China, with trading in Chinese markets actually halted after dropping 7% on the first trading day of the year.

So the economic news is good for US mortgage rates - and for US vacationers traveling to Europe, Asia and the Middle East. 

Keep your eyes on the macro- economy in the days and weeks to come!

Happy New Year!

Happy Investing!