GDP, October Durable Orders, Mortgage Rates

November 27, 2019

11/27/19

The second reading on Q3 Gross Domestic Product (GDP) rose to 2.1% from 1.9%. Within GDP it showed that consumer spending rose a solid 2.9%. The holiday shopping season is expected to robust given the strong job market and a healthy consumer. However, business investments slid in Q3.

October Durable Orders were up 0.6% versus the -0.7% expected while Weekly Initial Jobless Claims fell by 15,000 to 213,000 hovering near 50-year lows. The Core PCE, the Fed’s favorite inflation gauge, rose 1.6% annually in October from 1.7% in September. Personal Incomes were flat while Spending rose 0.3%. And the last data point today showed that Pending Home Sales unexpectedly fell 1.7% in October from September.

Mortgage rates were essentially unchanged in the week ended November 22, 2019. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage was 3.97% with 0.30 in points. The Refinance Index rose 4% while the Purchase Index fell by 1%. The Market Composite Index, a measure of total mortgage loan application volume, was up 1.5%. Rates remain historically low and should remain low for quite some time which will continue to support the housing market.