MBS down 20 bps overnight.
US equity futures climbed as corporate earnings surprised on the upside and returning
appetite for riskier growth stocks fueled a rally in Tesla Inc. Bonds sank in the wake of reports that showed accelerating inflation in France and Spain.
Bonds fell, pushing key yields in Germany to a 15-year high, as evidence mounted that a year’s worth of central-bank rate hikes have yet to rein in inflation. Treasury yields advanced, with the 10-year benchmark climbing three basis points but still below a key 4% threshold.
Consumer confidence declined in February, according to the Conference Board.
Home prices fell 0.1% in December, according to the FHFA House Price Index. For the year, home prices rose 8.4%. You can see a pretty wide skew in the regions. The top performing regions during the pandemic (West Coast and Mountain states) are bringing up the rear, while Florida and the Southeast are the leaders.
The Case-Shiller Home Price Index showed a bigger slowdown in December, with the index falling 0.8%. Prices fell in all 20 cities in December, with a median decline of -1.1%. Moreover, for all 20 cities, year-over-year gains in December (median 4.4%) were lower than those of November (median 6.4%). We noted last month that home prices in San Francisco had fallen on a year-over-year basis. San Francisco’s decline worsened in December (-4.2% year-over-year); its west coast neighbors Seattle (-1.8%) and Portland (+1.1%) once again form the bottom of the league table.
Apartment list reported that rents rose .3% in Feb – and low up 3.0% YoY. Home and rental prices have been significantly decelerating and have shown declines in some markets. Though we need this to help inflation problems
The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to hear a challenge that threatens to hobble the CFPB. At issue is the way Congress set up the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau: Instead of relying on annual spending legislation like other agencies, the CFPB is funded by the Federal Reserve, an arrangement intended to ensure its independence.
A while back, Ed Groshans with Compass Point Research & Trading, LLC, addressed the potential outcomes. “SCOTUS can hear the case and rule that the CFPB’s funding is constitutional. This outcome would have no bearing on the CFPB, and it would continue its normal operations. Or SCOTUS could hear the case and concur with the 5th Circuit opinion. In this scenario, we expect the CFPB would have to cease its operations until such time that it receives appropriated funds from Congress. If this opinion was issued in June, we expect that the CFPB’s activities would be halted until December 27 (page 3), at the latest.
Meanwhile, CFPB permanently banned RMK Financial Corporation, which does business as Majestic Home Loans, from the mortgage lending industry by prohibiting RMK from engaging in any mortgage lending activities or receiving remuneration from mortgage lending.