Eye On Housing
Consumer prices in March saw the smallest year-over-year gain since May 2021 with a ninth consecutive month of a deceleration. While the shelter index (housing inflation) experienced its smallest monthly gain since November 2022, it continued to be the largest contributor to the total increase, accounting for over 60% of the increase in all items less food and energy. The… Read More ›
Tag Archive for ‘monetary policy’
Downshift for the Fed
Downshifting its pace of tightening of monetary policy, the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy committee raised the federal funds target rate by 50 basis points, increasing that target to an upper bound of 4.5%. This marked a relatively smaller increase after four previous 75 basis point hikes. The Fed has clearly communicated it will continue to tighten monetary policy however, raising… Read More ›
Inflation Continues to Cool in November
Consumer prices in November saw the smallest year-over-year gain since December 2021.While still elevated, inflation experienced the second month below an 8% annual growth rate since February 2022. However, the shelter index continued to rise at an accelerated pace and was more than offsetting decreases in energy indexes. Shelter inflation will primarily be cooled in the future via additional housing… Read More ›
Inflation Shifts to Slowest Pace Since January
Consumer prices in October saw the smallest year-over-year gain since January 2022, and while still elevated, inflation experienced the first month below an 8% annual growth rate since February 2022. However, the shelter index continued to rise at an accelerated pace and the energy index increased after declining for three straight months. As inflation appears to have peaked and has… Read More ›
Inflation Remains Stubbornly High Despite Fed Rate Hikes
Consumer prices eased in September for the third-straight month as declines in energy prices partly offset increases in food and shelter indexes. Despite this slight improvement, inflation remains above an 8% year-over-year rate for the seven straight month. The food and shelter indexes continued to rise at an accelerated pace, with the owners’ equivalent rent index seeing the largest monthly… Read More ›
Inflation Remains Near 40-Year High
Consumer prices eased in August for the second-straight month as declines in energy prices offset increases in food and shelter indexes. Despite this slight improvement, inflation remains above an 8% year-over-year rate for the sixth straight month. The food index recorded its largest annual gain since May 1979 as all six major grocery store food group indexes increased. Though it… Read More ›
Has Inflation Peaked?
Consumer prices eased slightly from a 40-year high in July as declines in energy prices offset increases in food and shelter indexes. Despite this improvement, inflation remains above an 8% rate for a fifth straight month. The food index recorded its largest annual gain since May 1979 as all six major grocery store food group indexes increased. Nonetheless, it is… Read More ›
Mortgage Rates Reach 3-Year High
In the past month, total mortgage activity, as measured by the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Market Composite Index, underwent a series of weekly declines, decreasing in the latest week by 6.3 percent. The latest week’s survey is for the week ending April 1. The latest week’s activity consisted of a 3.4 percent decrease in purchasing and a 9.9 percent decrease… Read More ›
Monetary Policy Tightening Underway
The first of many expected Federal Reserve hikes of the short-term federal funds rate was announced today. Combined with future balance sheet runoff, these monetary policy moves will lead to higher mortgage rates in 2022 and 2023 as the Fed attempts to curb elevated inflation. As widely expected by forecasters and markets, the Fed raised the federal funds rate by… Read More ›
Federal Reserve: Closer to Taper
The Federal Reserve has been supporting the housing market during the virus crisis, the 2020 recession, and the subsequent, ongoing recovery via asset-backed purchases (among other tools), including $40 billion a month of mortgage-backed security (MBS) purchases. These MBS purchases have held interest rates lower than they otherwise would have been. Today, the Fed moved closer to announcing a tapering… Read More ›