US Mortgage Rates Fall to 5.08% Freddie Mac Says

US Mortgage Rates Fall to 5.08% Freddie Mac Says

By Brian Louis

Sept. 3 (Bloomberg) Mortgage rates for 30-year fixed U.S. home loans fell this week, reducing borrowing costs for buyers amid signs the U.S. housing market is stabilizing.

The average 30-year rate fell to 5.08 percent from 5.14 percent, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac of McLean, Virginia, said today in a statement. The 15-year rate was 4.54 percent.

“The drop in mortgage rates is probably a function of the longer-term Treasuries coming down a bit,” said George Mokrzan, senior economist at Huntington National Bank in Columbus, Ohio. “That’s a good thing. That should help to further support housing markets and give a little bit more support to that early stage of recovery.”

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Aussie and Kiwi Dollars Near One Year High After G20 Meeting

Australian, N.Z. Dollars Near One-Year High After G-20 Meeting

By Candice Zachariahs

Sept. 7 (Bloomberg) The Australian and New Zealand dollars traded near the strongest levels in a year as the Group of 20’s pledge to maintain economic stimulus boosted demand for higher-yielding assets.

The currencies extended last week’s gain versus the greenback after reports showed Australia’s building industry shrank at a slower pace and house prices in New Zealand climbed for a fourth month. Australia’s dollar advanced for a fourth day versus the yen after an industry report showed job vacancies rose in August for the first time in 16 months.

“The market has taken a little comfort from the strength with which the commitment to keeping the stimulus in place was talked about,” John Horner, a foreign-exchange strategist at Deutsche Bank AG in Sydney, said in a Bloomberg Television interview. “That’s going to underpin risk currencies like the Australian dollar and New Zealand dollar.”

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Oil Prices continue to fall

Oil falls as unemployment rises

Outlook For Oil Prices
Sept. 7 (Bloomberg) -- Crude oil traded near $68 a barrel on speculation OPEC will maintain curbs on output as supplies stay ample at the end of the U.S. peak summer demand season.
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