Rate update September 4, 2008
Mortgage rates remain unchanged although we are optimistic that they may move lower following tomorrow’s jobs report.
Being that tomorrow is the first Friday of the month the Labor Department will be issuing their monthly jobs report. Why is the monthly jobs report important to the direction of mortgage rates?
Here is a direct quote from my blog posting on the subject which can be viewed at this link:
The employment data gives the most comprehensive report on how many people are looking for jobs, how many have them, what they’re getting paid and how many hours they are working. These numbers are the best way to gauge the current state and future direction of the economy. They also provide insight on wage trends and wage inflation. If wage inflation threatens, usually interest rates will rise, and bond and stock prices will fall.
The analysts we follow seem to think that tomorrow’s jobs report will help mortgage rates move lower.
However, should the jobs report surprise to the upside it is likely we’d see rates move higher quickly because of technical trading patterns current present in the market.