Source Bloomberg:
Filings for U.S. unemployment benefits rose more than forecast
last week amid holiday-related volatility, while remaining low by
historical standards. Jobless claims rose by 22,000 to a
four-week high of 259,000 in the period ended Jan. 21, which
included the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday, a Labor Department
report showed Thursday in Washington. The median projection of
economists surveyed by Bloomberg called for 247,000. Even with
the increase, companies remain reluctant to fire
employees as it becomes tougher to find experienced workers to
replace them. A tightening labor market, with rising payrolls and
job vacancies near highs for this expansion, may lead to a
sustained pickup in wages this year. The claims figures tend to
be more volatile during weeks around holidays, making seasonal
adjustments by the Labor Department more difficult. Jobless
claims have remained below 300,000 for 99 consecutive weeks, the
longest streak since 1970 and a threshold economists say is
indicative of a healthy labor market. Estimates in the Bloomberg
survey ranged from 235,000 to 270,000. The Labor Department
revised the prior weeks reading to 237,000 from an initially
reported 234,000. The four-week average of claims, a
less-volatile measure than the weekly figure, declined to
245,500, the lowest since 1973, from 247,500 in the prior week.
The number of people continuing to receive jobless benefits
increased by 41,000 to 2.1 million in the week ended Jan. 14. The
unemployment rate among people eligible for benefits held at 1.5
percent. These data are reported with a one-week lag. No states
or territories had estimated claims last week and there was
nothing unusual in the data, according to the Labor
Department.
MCLEAN, VA--(Marketwired - Jan 26, 2017) - Freddie Mac (OTCQB:
FMCC) today released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market
Survey® (PMMS®), showing average 30-year and 15-year fixed
mortgage rates rising for the first time in 2017.
News Facts
•30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 4.19 percent with an
average 0.4 point for the week ending Jan. 26, 2017, up from last
week when it averaged 4.09 percent. A year ago at this time, the
30-year FRM averaged 3.79 percent.
Borrowers may still pay closing costs which are not included in
the survey.
Quote
Attributed to Sean Becketti, chief economist, Freddie Mac.
"The 10-year Treasury yield increased more than 10 basis points
this week. The 30-year mortgage rate moved up as well to 4.19
percent, a 10 basis point jump. This week marks the first
increase in the mortgage rate since December 29. The 2.8 percent
decline in existing home sales in December is a reminder of the
lack of homes for sale. According to the National Association of
Realtors, supply is at its lowest level since 1999, a factor that
should support higher house prices regardless of the oscillations
of the mortgage rate."
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