|
Stock markets were relatively unchanged this week – Despite the war in the Middle East, stock markets ended the week about the same as they were last week. We did see stocks drop following the September CPI report which showed that inflation picked up slightly in September with consumer prices increasing 3.7% from one year ago. That marked the third consecutive month of the key inflation reading increasing after dropping steadily from 9.1% year-over-year in June 2023 to 3% year-over-year in June of 2023. Unfortunately, that trend ended in July and consumer prices increases have ticked up steadily in the past three months. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed the week at 33,670.29, up 0.8% from 33,407.58 last week. It is up 1.6% year-to-date. The S&P 500 closed the week at 4,327.78, up 0.4% from 4,308.54 last week. It is up 12.7% year-to-date. The Nasdaq closed the week at 13,407.28, down 0.2% from 13,431.34 last week. It is up 28.1% year-to-date.
U.S. Treasury bond yields – The 10-year treasury bond closed the week yielding 4.63%, down from 4.78% last week. The 30-year treasury bond yield ended the week at 4.78%, down from 4.95% last week. We watch bond yields because mortgage rates follow bond yields. Mortgage rates – The Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Survey reported that mortgage rates for the most popular loan products as of October 12, 2023, were as follows: The 30-year fixed mortgage rate was 7.57%, up from 7.49% last week. The 15-year fixed was 6.89% up from 6.78% last week. Real estate sales figures for September closings will be released next week by the California Association of Realtors and the National Association of Realtors. You can get that data now for your city or zip code at RodeoRe.com. Have a great weekend! |