Bulls & Blogs

Rate update: Stuck in the middle again

Apr 122019

For more information, please contact me at (512) 261-1542 or steve@LoneStarLending.com.

By G. Steven Bray

After a quick move lower following last month’s Federal Reserve meeting, mortgage rates have moderated a bit. Concerns of a global recession prompted the move lower, and the Fed seemed to add fuel to that concern with the changes to its policy stance, announcing what is in a sense version 5 of quantitative easing, which has helped keep rates low for years.

Rates rebounded a bit when investors realized the US economy certainly isn’t circling the drain. We’ve had two strong jobs reports, and retail sales rebounded after the government shutdown. The data isn’t as strong as it was last year, but it certainly doesn’t seem to indicate an imminent recession.

Overseas is another story. At its meeting this week, the head of the European Central Bank all but predicted a recession in Europe, and European economic data continues to weaken. Britain still hasn’t figured out how it’s going to leave the European Union, which breeds uncertainty, a close friend of low interest rates. And China’s economy also is slowing, and analysts worry that a resolution to the trade dispute may not be enough to stop the slide.

So, that’s the bad news – the news that’s pressuring rates lower. But investors see a US economy that seems to be chugging along. Thus, rates are stuck in the middle – not sure which force is going to be stronger. And they’re liable to stay that way until new headlines tip the scales.

Among the predictable headlines I’m watching right now are the Chinese trade talks and inflation data. I still believe a good trade deal penned in the next couple months will put some upward pressure on rates. However, it has to happen before the Chinese economy slips too far. On the inflation front, recent reports show inflation sliding lower again, which makes the Fed nervous. Receding inflation should put downward pressure on rates.

Rate update: 4 events that could break the range

Interest Rates, Residential Mortgage Comments Off

Mar 132019

For more information, please contact me at (512) 261-1542 or steve@LoneStarLending.com.

By G. Steven Bray

Still riding the range. It’s not a bad place to be when mortgage rates are the lowest they’ve been in a year. This range has held for an unusually long time, and we’ve been looking towards this month as the time when the range finally might break down. There’s no sign of that yet, but let’s review some events that could make it happen.

US economic data probably carries the greatest weight. Most of the data this year has shown continued economic strength – until the Feb jobs report. The report didn’t just miss expectations, it was anemic. Could it be an outlier due to the government shutdown or seasonal factors? Possibly. The Jan number was oddly high. Regardless, the weak jobs report combined with this week’s tame inflation reports have bond buyers in a frisky mood, and that’s good for interest rates. Any additional weak economic data likely will get the recession whisperers going again, and rates could break lower.

The other elephant in the room is the ongoing Chinese trade talks. I still think a trade deal is likely to pump up rates a bit as it not only will remove impediments to economic growth, it will remove the uncertainty that acts like a weight on rates.

Foreign economic uncertainty carries less weight, but its pervasiveness at the moment may be giving it an over-sized effect. Brexit talks continue to flounder, and a no-deal divorce between Britain and the EU is full of unknowns. The European Central Bank last week again lowered its growth estimates and discussed stimulus measures to shore up the European economy. Chinese growth has cooled significantly, and recent data shows its manufacturing sector in contraction.

Finally, we have the Federal Reserve meeting next week. The Fed had a large part in setting up the current range with its about-face on rate hikes following its Dec meeting. Markets currently see little chance of the Fed raising interest rates soon. Should the Fed’s post-meeting announcement suggest otherwise, rates could make a quick jump higher.

Rate update: Range is a nice place to be

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Feb 262019

For more information, please contact me at (512) 261-1542 or steve@LoneStarLending.com.

By G. Steven Bray

Mortgage rates remain range-bound, and fortunately for us the range is a pretty nice place to be. Rates are the best they’ve been since last summer. At some point, the range is going to break, so let’s look at the factors that may influence that break.

Rates hit their recent peak and started heading lower last Nov in response to stock market losses and concerns about the economy. The stock market has rebounded, and recent US economic data looks pretty rosy, so we don’t have those factors working for us anymore.

Trade concerns, especially the ongoing tariff battle with China, added uncertainty to the market, which put downward pressure on rates. However, it’s looking increasing possible that China and the US will resolve their trade issues and remove that as a factor.

Concerns about global economic growth have been a factor for a while, and those concerns seem to be intensifying. Recent data from Europe, China, and Japan have indicated weakening economies, and Europe still has its Brexit headache. Remember that slowing economies lead to less demand for money, which leads to lower rates.

But I’d say the biggest factor affecting rates right now is the Federal Reserve. It was the Fed meeting in Dec that put the exclamation point on the stock market swoon, and it was the Fed’s reaction to the swoon at its last meeting that solidified the current rate range. More recently, the Fed has hinted it may start buying bonds again, which would put more downward pressure on rates.

Despite those hints, Fed head Powell has been clear that the Fed is keenly interested in economic data (both US and global) and will respond accordingly. Most of the US data released this month was polluted by the government shutdown, and it won’t be until mid-Mar until that pollution clears – which could be the time rates finally leave the range.

Rate update: Investors think Fed is done raising rates

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Feb 122019

For more information, please contact me at (512) 261-1542 or steve@LoneStarLending.com.

By G. Steven Bray

The Federal Reserve gave rate watchers a great gift a couple weeks ago – assurances that it’s well aware of the potential for slowing economic growth. Markets reacted with a big rally, and analysts now predict the chances of the Fed lowering rates before the end of the year as high as the chances it will raise rates again.

However, lost in the excitement was the Fed’s reiteration that it will tweak its plans based on economic data. Two days after the Fed meeting, the Jan jobs report crushed expectations, and other economic reports showed the economy still seems to be humming along.

Investors still have other concerns: the government funding deal, the Chinese trade dispute, and weakening global growth. All have created uncertainty that’s counteracting the good news on the economy, and that seems to be keeping rates trapped in a very narrow range.

So, what to watch? Personally, I don’t think anyone in Washington wants another shutdown, and I think markets already expect the compromise to pass. Chinese trade, on the other hand, could be a market mover. As long as a trade deal remains elusive, I think rates will remain capped. If a trade deal happens, watch out for higher rates. Even then, I think global growth concerns will remain background uncertainty that keeps rates from rising too fast.

We have one other issue to watch. The Fed meets again in mid-Mar. Based on the Fed’s last post-meeting announcement and press conference, markets seem convinced the Fed has hit the pause button on tighter monetary policy. If the Fed’s dot plot in Mar continues to show more rate hikes, or if Fed governors over the next month backtrack on their earlier caution, look for rates to rise again.

Rate update: Rates couldn’t care less about the shutdown

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Jan 282019

For more information, please contact me at (512) 261-1542 or steve@LoneStarLending.com.

By G. Steven Bray

The end of the government shutdown removed one element of uncertainty for markets, but clearly it wasn’t a critical one as interest rates barely moved in response. I half expected a little volatility today, the first trading day after the government reopened. Instead, the day passed quietly. I suspect that’s because more important events await us this week.

First up is the Federal Reserve meeting, which ends on Wed. No one expects the Fed to change interest rates at this meeting, but pretty much everyone expects the Fed to soften its attitude towards future rate hikes. It also will be interesting to see what the Fed says about the effects of the shutdown. I suspect markets already have priced in a more dovish Fed. Thus, if the attitude, as reflected in the post-meeting announcement, hasn’t changed, watch out for higher rates.

Friday brings the Jan jobs report. No one knows exactly how the shutdown effected employment. While furloughed government workers were counted among the employed, employees of contractors that were sidelined by the funding lapse may have been counted as unemployed.

Analysts are predicting employers created about half as many jobs in Jan as in Dec; however, count me among the skeptics about whether analysts have captured the extent of the shutdown effect. One thing is likely: if the actual number of jobs differs significantly from the predictions, talking heads will do what they do best – talk – and markets will be choppy.

Finally, keep an eye on the China trade talks. Markets have been reacting to pretty much every headline the past couple weeks. That partly may have been because the shutdown bottled up economic data investors use to make trading decisions. However, I suspect markets would have been reacting anyway. Chinese economic data seems to show the trade war has significantly affected its economy. Positive headlines allow investors to think maybe the world’s economy isn’t really slowing, and equity markets rally in response. That’s been a negative for interest rates, and I suspect more positive headlines will bring more of the same.

Rate update: Will party poopers spoil our lower rates

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Jan 092019

For more information, please contact me at (512) 261-1542 or steve@LoneStarLending.com.

By G. Steven Bray

Last Friday’s jobs report was strong. How strong? Well, the number of jobs created was the most for a Dec in 20 years. Average hourly earnings growth remained above 3% for the third consecutive month, and average hours worked also ticked higher. Revisions to previous months also were positive.

It would seem that the report would confirm market fear that the Federal Reserve will continue its rate-hiking campaign unabated. As we discussed last week, markets fear the Fed will choke off economic growth with rate hikes.

However, a couple other economic headliners also attended the party. First was last week’s ISM manufacturing report, which measures the strength of the manufacturing sector. It showed the greatest one month decline since the Great Recession. While the report’s index still shows good sector growth, the report is a leading indicator of economic activity. The jobs report, on the other hand, is a lagging indicator. So, even though the job market is very healthy, the ISM report could portend a coming economic slowdown.

The second headliner was a speech by Fed head Powell. Apparently, he wrote the speech before he saw the jobs report because it was very dovish. Basically, Powell said the Fed will be sensitive to market signals in setting its future rate policy. Well, the stock market loved this and went on a tear. Bond markets, which sank after the jobs report, sank further as investors sold bonds to buy equities. (Selling bonds raises interest rates.)

The question for rates is which version of reality is the correct one: a strong economy inviting further Fed tightening or a slowing economy leading to Fed restraint? Which version markets believe is likely to dictate whether we can hold the rate gains made over the holidays.

So far this week, markets seem to be leaning towards the slowing economy with a hedge. They’ve given up about a quarter of the rate gains and have leveled off waiting for further inspiration. That inspiration may come from this Friday’s inflation report. An elevated reading will likely send rates higher again, but a tame reading – in the 2% range – probably wouldn’t elicit any response.

I see one wildcard that could push rates either way – the China trade talks. I still think positive progress could make markets overlook the ISM reports and lay bets on a stronger economy again.

Rate update: The reason rates are rallying

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Jan 032019

For more information, please contact me at (512) 261-1542 or steve@LoneStarLending.com.

By G. Steven Bray

The Christmas rate rally so far has extended into the new year. Mortgage rates are the lowest they’ve been since last spring. Let’s try to understand why so that we might predict if the lower rates will last – or might get even better.

The recent rally has coincided with a swoon in the stock market, and most pundits agree that the two markets are connected at this time. Money is moving out of stocks and into bonds. So, the source of these movements should be able to explain both markets.

The movement seemed to start over a month ago based on general concerns about the strength of the global economy. It gained momentum after the Dec Federal Reserve meeting at which the Fed raised short term rates for the fourth time in 2018. Markets expected that rate hike, but apparently they were expecting the Fed to acknowledge more forcefully rising risks to the global economy. The main concern is the Fed will miss market signals and hike rates too high too fast and choke the economy. The momentum accelerated this week with the release of US and Chinese economic data showing both economies may be slowing.

Okay, so let’s dig a little deeper and try to predict the future of rates. The movement seems predicated on a slowing economy, or dare I say, a pending recession. So far, US economic data shows slowing growth, but the data still is decidedly positive. About the only negative signals so far come from the housing market, which never fully recovered from the Great Recession and is suffering from a severe inventory shortage.

That said, business and consumer confidence are off their recent highs, and the stock market swoon could further erode confidence. A continuing government shutdown could exacerbate this situation. Remember that confidence reflects expectations, and expectations influence actions. If consumers and businesses start to have doubts about the direction of the economy, weakness could become a self-fulfilling prophecy.

On the global stage, it seems clear that growth is slowing, but it’s unclear how much of this slowing reflects the ongoing trade dispute between the US and China. Should the countries resolve the dispute in the next few months, it could buoy market sentiment and put a quick end to our rally.

Rate update: Rising wages could thwart our rate rally

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Dec 052018

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By G. Steven Bray

It’s another jobs report week, and this could be an important one for mortgage rates. Rates have been trending down slowly for the last couple weeks aided by low oil prices and concerns about the sustainability of economic growth. It’s the latter that should be of more interest to those wanting lower interest rates.

While US economic data remains strong, market sentiment has become more equivocal. Several factors have contributed to this turn.

– The Federal Reserve has hiked short term interest rates three times this year and seems likely to hike again in a couple weeks. Markets worry that higher rates are going to choke off growth by making it harder for consumers and businesses to afford debt. An indication of their concern is the Treasury yield curve, the yield difference between short and long term Treasury bonds. The difference is as small as it’s been since the last recession and could go negative soon. A negative, or inverted yield curve has been an accurate indicator of recessions for the last half century.

– Even though the US economy appears strong, other economies have softened, and the World Bank continues to lower its estimates for global growth. Brexit and the Italian budget crisis add further uncertainty to the mix. A global slowdown should increase the appetite for US debt and reduce inflationary pressures, both of which help interest rates.

– Finally, some investors are simply worried the current economic expansion has gone on too long, and they don’t want to get caught on the wrong side of trading when it ends.

The wildcard this week is the jobs report on Friday. Watch the wage component of the report. Wage growth has moderated slightly since it jumped earlier this year. If that moderation continues, markets are likely to consider it a validation of the recent decline in rates. If the report shows elevated wage pressures, our recent holiday from higher rates could come to an end very quickly.

Rate update: Trade war vs inflation

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Jul 102018

For more information, please contact me at (512) 261-1542 or steve@LoneStarLending.com.

By G. Steven Bray

If you’ve been waiting to lock your mortgage rate, I have good news and bad news. The good news is that you haven’t lost any ground. Rates have been remarkably flat for the last few weeks. The bad news is that if you were hoping for lower rates, your hopes went unfulfilled.

Rates seem to be caught in a tug of war. On one side, we have trade war fears. Traders have been yo-yo-ing in response to constant headlines. Now, it’s quite possible that trading partners are using the headlines to manage their bargaining positions, but this leads to uncertainty, which exerts downward pressure on rates.

On the other side, we have inflation. The Federal Reserve’s favored inflation metric, the personal consumption expenditures index, finally rose to the Fed’s target of 2% in May. Analysts attribute the rise to the robust economy. Even though last Friday’s jobs report didn’t show elevated wage inflation, it did show that job growth remains strong. A strong labor market does exert pressure on wages in some parts of the economy even if the overall inflation rate remains tame.

So, which side will win? We could find out this week. This Thurs, we get the granddaddy of inflation reports, the Consumer Price Index (CPI). Analysts predict 2.3%, which is as high as the CPI has been since the Great Recession. A higher number could pull the rope in favor of inflation, leading to a quick jump in mortgage rates. However, a number that matches expectations probably will leave rates stuck in their current range for another couple weeks – waiting for the next headline.

Rate update: Tariff Twitter good for rates

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Jun 192018

For more information, please contact me at (512) 261-1542 or steve@LoneStarLending.com.

By G. Steven Bray

Rates have had it good lately:

– First up was the inflation report. It matched expectations. While this put the core rate at 2.2%, above the magic 2% mark, markets were worried it would be higher. Additionally, the Fed’s favored inflation metric, the PCE, continues to be below 2%.

– Next came the Federal Reserve. While the Fed raised short term rates as expected and increased the chances of a 4th rate hike this year, Chairman Powell said that he wasn’t concerned at all with inflation getting out of control and, maybe more importantly, that we’re getting closer to a “neutral Fed funds rate.” Analysts concluded that the trajectory of Fed policy is about as tight as it’s going to get, and bond markets sighed in relief.

– The next day brought the European Central Bank meeting. The ECB did announce it will end its asset purchase program by the end of the year, a negative for rates. However, it also said it doesn’t expect to hike rates until the end of next summer, and the ECB president made a case for economic weakness during his press conference. Bond markets cheered.

– Finally, we were treated to tariff Twitter. Markets don’t really care about the imbalances caused by prior administations’ trade policy. More important is the uncertain effects of the various proposed tariffs. I still say a full-blown trade war is unlikely. The targets of the tariffs have more to lose, and negotiation is the most likely outcome. However, the uncertainty may keep a lid on rates for now.

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