Mortgage Rates Flat in the Face of Trade Worries, Stock Market Gyrations

Despite an escalating trade battle between the United States and China that has sparked stock market gyrations over the past week, mortgage rates remain flat – continuing to hover slightly below their highest levels in years.

Investors fear that a trade dispute could trip up the U.S. economy after nearly a decade of slow-but-steady economic growth, but their concerns have not translated into rate volatility. The mortgage rate on Zillow for a typical 30-year fixed mortgage was 4.35 percent late Wednesday.

International trade and geopolitical news is likely to dominate headlines over the next week – including continued U.S.-China developments and looming decisions about European trade arrangements post-Brexit – as markets head into the July 4 holiday.

Friday marks the release of the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation measure, the personal consumption expenditures price index excluding food and energy. May numbers are not expected to rouse Fed concerns. One indication that the economy is percolating is U.S. oil production, which this month reached – and maintained – record levels. The United States is producing more oil each day than any other country except Russia.