Home >> Tag Archives: Shares (page 3)

Tag Archives: Shares

Fannie: 50% Chance U.S. Economy Will Double-Dip by End of 2012

Mortgage giant Fannie Mae gives the U.S. economy equal chances for a second recession and recovery by the end of next year. Podcasting the 2011 October Economic Outlook, titled Economy at a Crossroads, the company forecasted that GDP will stay below 2 percent for the remainder of 2011 into next year. Among other reasons, the GSE's internal think tank cited trouble in the financial and labor markets, given the euro debt crisis, weak jobs reports, and low consumer confidence. The outlook follows several other similar reports.

Read More »

FOMC Minutes Suggest Fed Officials Wanted Bolder Action

Fed

Governors sitting on the board of the Federal Reserve pressed their fellow central bankers for more bond purchases, an idea the institution ultimately rejected in favor of $400 billion in short-term Treasury purchases to offset worries about a new recession. The minutes portray the last meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee, held in early September, as one carefully assessing the current economic climate and an array of fiscal and monetary measures needed to sustain a national recovery.

Read More »

Mortgage Rates Climb Higher Following Steep Fall Last Week

After hitting rock bottom last week, mortgage rates returned to previous lows on a somewhat tenuous climb this week as European central bankers seemed to reach a deal and a U.S. jobs report netted better-than-expected results. Leaping forward from a history-making 3.94 percent last week, interest rates for the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage rose to 4.12 percent, according to Freddie. Bankrate.com offered up similar results, showcasing a 4.37-percent 30-year loan rate this week, up from 4.21 percent.

Read More »

MBA: Expect 2012 Originations to Hit $900B

Fewer refinance applications will drive mortgage originations substantially lower over 2012, with loan volume plunging from $1.2 trillion over 2011 to $900 billion over the new year, according to recent study by the Mortgage Bankers Association. The trade group tied historically low mortgage rates, plodding existing-home sales and home prices, and a laggardly unemployment rate to the notion that the U.S. will continue to experience trouble ahead in mortgage originations.

Read More »

Bank Shares Lift on News of a Europe Bailout Deal

Stocks and shares for mortgage lenders and homebuilding companies got swept into a market updraft following news reports that major European economies had agreed to bail out their Mediterranean counterparts. Several weeks of speculation trail the news, with investors fleeing, then returning to shares and stocks on wobbly notions that Europe├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔÇ×┬ós two biggest economies, France and Germany, will pull debt-ridden laggards Greece, Italy, and potentially others away from a default scenario.

Read More »

Rumored Europe Relief Sends Up Shares for Lenders

After a drought for good news, markets and mortgage lenders found reason to celebrate Monday with a late-day flood by investors to their stocks. Confidence-boosting measures by government officials led the charge by investors to lenders like Bank of America and JPMorgan Chase, with central bankers in Europe mustering up an aid package for debt-ridden countries.

Read More »

Economic Worries Trample on New-Home Sales Over August

Despite the lure of record-low mortgage rates, fewer consumers stepped out from behind the fear of a global economic slowdown to purchase new homes, curtailing new sales by 2.3 percent month-over-month in August. Market watchers chalked up a six-month dearth to consumers wary about their job security, stock markets, and the threat of a new recession. The Census Bureau signaled a fallback to 295,000 housing units on a seasonally adjusted basis, down from 302,000 from July.

Read More »

Dodd-Frank Cheered, Jeered, as Moody’s Downgrades Big Banks

In a surprise move, Moody's Investors Service slashed credit ratings for mortgage giants Bank of America, Citigroup, and Wells Fargo Wednesday afternoon, citing concerns that the federal government may not rush to pick up their remains and bail out the institutions in another liquidity crisis. Critics and advocates of the Dodd-Frank Act used the downgrades to alternately justify the legislation or undermine it in the national square. The downgrades arrive amid a slew of bad times for the nation├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔÇ×┬ós largest mortgage lenders.

Read More »

Feds Seen as Able to Weather Crisis if Greece Defaults

With fears on the rise about a Greek default, stocks for U.S. companies and lenders fell around midday Monday. Speaking with MReport, federal regulatory agencies downplayed the fears despite quarterly numbers that found an expansion in lending volume between wobbly euro zone and U.S. financial institutions over the first quarter. New worries about a spreading debt contagion arose over the weekend when European Union officials reached an impasse in bailout talks.

Read More »

Mortgage Rates Smash New Records on Europe Debt Fears

A rush by overseas investors to the safe haven of U.S. Treasury debt helped whittle away at yields and force mortgage rates to all-time lows, a short-term boon to creditworthy homebuyers. With the 30-year benchmark loan smashing new records, analysts for mortgage giant Freddie Mac and finance Web site Bankrate.com chalked up the favorable rates to a wobbly Greece and unsettled concerns over euro zone markets. Bankrate.com and Freddie Mac report the latest mortgage rates each week.

Read More »