Below is a must-watch Bloomberg interview with Kansas City Fed president Thomas Hoenig on U.S. monetary policy outlook and the economy. He’s retiring next month and has been a lone dissenter on most post-crisis Fed policies. Below video is a summary from Mike “Mish” Shedlock, and a link to his full analysis. Good interview with
Thomas Hoenig
I’ve cooled to NYT’s Gretchen Morgenson over the years because she’s taken the easy populist path of evil institutions out to destroy consumers. That theme attracts readers but she’s not on the ground at the financial, mortgage and real estate advisor levels so she’s unaware that there are armies of advisors out there who see
Dallas Fed president was out in force last week with anti-inflation warnings, first during an interview with Reuters, then during a speech in Brussels. Yet throughout the crisis recovery period, he’s used his position on the FOMC to vote for near-zero overnight rates and to press forward with two rounds (and more than $2 trillion
Today’s Fed statement acknowledges economic recovery is on “firmer footing,” and while the Fed acknowledges inflationary concerns, it’s choosing to ignore inflation pressure for now and keeping overnight bank-to-bank target Fed Funds Rates at 0-.25%, and keeping the overnight Fed-to-bank Discount Rates at .75%. They also said they’d keep going with their second round of
In the classic movie Big, Tom Hanks, a boy trapped in a man’s body, watches 40-something toy company executives pitch a new toy and responds with a simple boyish dissent: “I don’t get it.” This direct approach breathes new life into a staid environment, reinvents the toy, and the company goes gangbusters. It’s not quite
Below is the statement from the first Fed rate policy of 2011, which shows their view that the economic recovery and jobs situation is still unstable. They left overnight bank to bank lending rates the same at a 0-.25% target, and also said they’d continue their $600b quantitative easing program designed to lower business rates
Following the last Fed policy statement of 2010 (below), rates continue higher—30yr fixed 5% today vs. 4% on October 8—as mortgage and Treasury bond prices continue to trade lower on the 4 rate themes of recent weeks. The Fed noted that “the economic recovery is continuing” and that they’d continue the $600b+ Treasury buying (QE2)
Following the last Fed policy statement of 2010 (below), rates continue higher—30yr fixed 5% today vs. 4% on October 8—as mortgage and Treasury bond prices continue to trade lower on the 4 rate themes of recent weeks. The Fed noted that “the economic recovery is continuing” and that they’d continue the $600b+ Treasury buying (QE2)
Rates ended last week even vs. previous week. Record low rates are holding as we head into the September 20 week. Rates and fine-print below. Also below are three topics: (1) Fed meeting and home sales preview, (2) critical alert on FHA loan cost increases, and (3) advice for refinancers. Rate Factors Week of September
Jumpy Rate Market Response To GDP & Home Sales Reports Rates dropped 0.2% early last week then rose Friday to end the week even. The $109b in Treasury auctions throughout last week caused mortgage bonds to sell off slightly, and July’s record low New Home Sales (down 32.4% year-over-year) and Existing Home Sales (down 25.5%
Thomas Hoenig is a voting FOMC member who’s voted against keeping rates low at every Fed meeting in 2010. He gave a speech today providing his rationale for why he thinks U.S. monetary policy is too accommodative. The full speech is below—fairly dismal but all good points. His basic premise is that using loose monetary
Mortgage bonds closed up 19 basis points today following a Fed meeting where they kept their low rate stance. Mortgage lender rate sheets didn’t decrease commensurately as lenders held the line ahead of a 10yr Treasury note auction Wednesday and a 30yr T-Bond auction Thursday. Lenders do this because longer-dated Treasury auctions compete with mortgage
The Federal Open Market Committee voted today to keep the overnight bank-to-bank Fed Funds Rate steady at 0-0.25% and the overnight Fed-to-bank discount rate at .75%, citing subdued inflation that’s likely to continue for “some time.” For the fourth straight meeting in 2010, Kansas City Fed President Thomas Hoenig dissented on the belief that modest
Zero-point rates on 30yr fixed Conforming loans (up to $729k) begin this week up about .125% after touching record low levels the week of May 17, and rates on Jumbo loans (above $729k) are steady. Rates are holding just above record lows because global investors continue to be net buyers of Treasury and mortgage bonds
Rates are net up .25% in the past 2 weeks, with rates up even higher on certain trading days. This WeeklyBasis report’s rate lock bias for the past two weeks continues into next week. Below is a recap of why rates have moved up and why they might continue up next week. Also remember that
Despite volatility last week that caused rates to move up and down about .2%, we ended the week even. Business and consumer inflation reports both showed that inflation is under control. The Fed reiterated this after their FOMC meeting Tuesday, and left overnight bank-to-bank and Fed-to-bank rates at .25% and .75% respectively. Rates were especially
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