Tag Archives: Federal Reserve

Policymakers are apparently in no hurry to start hiking interest rates just yet, bringing back language from the last FOMC statement: "Based on its current assessment, the Committee judges that it can be patient in beginning to normalize the stance of monetary policy."

In the latest Beige Book report released on Wednesday, the Fed said that contacts in most of its 12 districts expect faster growth in the year ahead, though some in the Dallas district are worried about a slowdown as the oil market suffers.

With the Federal Reserve recently ending its monthly asset purchases and turning toward the possibility of bringing short-term interest rates up in 2015, analysts (including economists at Freddie Mac, Fannie Mae, the Mortgage Bankers Association, and other housing groups and companies) are calling for the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate to rise to nearly 4.5 percent, with some calling for an average closer to 5 percent.

In a policy statement released following the last 2014 meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), the central bank reaffirmed its view that the economy is expanding at a "moderate pace," pointing to continued improvements in the labor market tempered by still-high numbers of unemployed and underemployed Americans and slower growth in the housing sector.

According to the OCC survey, 92 percent of surveyed banks originated residential real estate loans in 2014, and a full 20 percent reported tightening their standards regarding who can attain these loans. Seventy percent reported no changes in their standards, leaving a comparatively slight 10 percent of institutions claiming they eased their standards for residential mortgages.

In its latest Beige Book—a catalog of economic reports from contacts across all 12 Fed districts—the central bank noted that "national economic activity continued to expand in October and November."

The Federal Reserve's Labor Market Conditions Index (LMCI) rose 4 points last month, the central bank reported, matching September's revised improvement. The index covers 19 separate indicators, including the national unemployment rate, average hourly earnings, and the transition rate from unemployment to employment.

The new rule, which goes into effect on January 1, 2015, prohibits a financial company from combining with another company if the liabilities of the newly formed company between the two exceed 10 percent of aggregate consolidated liabilities of all financial companies.

The Fed's Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey, which covers a three-month period ending in October, shows credit standards on prime mortgages remained basically steady at 83 percent of reporting banks over the last few months. Of the nearly 14 percent that reported easing their lending criteria somewhat, the vast majority were large banks with assets of $20 billion or more, with only one smaller institution dialing down its standards.

Gross domestic product (GDP) in the United States increased at an annualized rate of 3.5 percent last quarter, according to an advance estimate from the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA). Economists surveyed by Econoday anticipated a growth rate of 3.0 percent. The GDP report comes a day after the Federal Reserve announced plans to close down its stimulative bond-buying program, signaling increased confidence in the economy's progression.