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Economy in Brief
Surging Imports Send the EMU Trade Scene Deeper into Deficit
The trade balance for the Euro Area fell sharply to 17.5 billion euros in March...
U.S. Import Prices Hold Steady While Export Prices Rise in April
Import prices held steady m/m (+12.0% y/y) in April...
EMU IP Drops Month-to-Month and Year-over-Year
Industrial output among EMU members fell by 1.8% month-to-month in March...
U.S. Producer Price Inflation Moderates in April
The Producer Price Index for Final Demand increased 0.5% during April...
U.S. Housing Affordability Plunges in March
Affordable homes are in short supply...
Viewpoints
Commentaries are the opinions of the author and do not reflect the views of Haver Analytics.
The Many Links of Inflation Cycle: Hard Landing Is Needed to Crack Them
Peak Inflation & Fed Policy: A Relationship Which Should Worry The Fed And Scare Investors
Why Have the Yields on TIPS Been Negative in the Past Two Years?
"Core" GDP Suggests Economy Gained Momentum in Q1:2022
by Tom Moeller April 20, 2022
• Refinancing falloff is pronounced.
• Purchase applications reverse earlier increase.
• Mortgage interest rates increase modestly w/w.
The Mortgage Bankers Association's Loan Applications Index declined 5.0% (-48.4% y/y) in the week ended April 15, the sixth consecutive weekly decline. The decline was to the lowest level since the week ended February 8, 2019. Applications for refinancing declined 7.7% (-68.2% y/y) last week following a 4.9% weakening in the previous week. Applications for purchase fell 3.0% (-14.0% y/y) following a 1.4% gain in the prior week.
The share of applications for refinancing fell sharply to 35.7%, down from 76.5% early in March 2020. The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share of activity rose to 10.6% from 9.2% in the previous week.
The effective rate on 30-year fixed-rate loans increased to 5.39%, the highest level since April 2010. The effective rate on 15-year fixed-rate loans rose to 4.63%. The rate on a Jumbo 30-year loan increased to 4.89% and the rate on a 5-year ARM was little-changed at 4.29%.
Applications for fixed-rate loans declined 6.1% (-51.0% y/y) in the week ended April 15 after falling 1.9% in the previous week. Applications for adjustable-rate mortgages increased 9.1% (+21.2% y/y) following an 8.3% rise in the previous week.
The average size of a mortgage loan rose 1.0% (19.9% y/y) to a record $396,000. The average size of a loan for purchase edged up 0.2% (11.7% y/y) to $453,800. The average size of a refinanced loan gained 1.1% (4.3% y/y) to $291,500.
This survey covers over 75% of all U.S. retail residential mortgage applications and has been conducted weekly since 1990. Respondents include mortgage bankers, commercial banks, and thrifts. The base period and value for all indexes is March 16, 1990=100. The figures for weekly mortgage applications and interest rates are available in Haver's SURVEYS database.
MBA Mortgage Applications (%, SA) | 04/15/22 | 04/08/22 | 04/01/22 | Y/Y | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Total Market Index | -5.0 | -1.3 | -6.3 | -48.4 | -8.0 | 63.0 | 32.4 |
Purchase | -3.0 | 1.4 | -3.4 | -14.0 | -2.3 | 11.4 | 6.6 |
Refinancing | -7.7 | -4.9 | -9.9 | -68.2 | -10.7 | 111.0 | 71.1 |
30-Year Effective Mortgage Interest Rate (%) | 5.39 | 5.31 | 5.06 | 3.34
(Apr. '21) | 3.25 | 3.40 | 4.34 |