Mortgage Rates Unfazed by Blockbuster Headlines; Down Slightly This Week

Mortgage rates fell slightly this week, fluctuating over the past few days on an abundance of economic, monetary policy and geopolitical headlines.

Despite much fanfare, most of this news was largely anticipated by markets and served to move rates only modestly. Rates nudged upward after the U.S extended a deadline on increasing tariffs on Chinese goods, before retreating (again, modestly) after Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell reiterated the Fed’s “patient” approach to policy changes in addresses to Congress on Tuesday and Wednesday.

This week also brought a heavy dose of economic data releases, which are still playing catch-up from the partial U.S. government shutdown, which continues to blur market signals. The clearest indicator may have been offered by Wednesday’s unexpectedly strong pending home sales release, a sign of better days to come for a housing market that has been a soft spot in the economy for the last several months.

Looking ahead, all eyes are on Thursday’s initial Q4 GDP reading and Friday’s inflation data release, two key indicators Fed officials watch to evaluate the health of the U.S. economy.