While it’s not a set deal, the Federal Reserve does appear to be on track for a June rate cut, and following its two-day policy meeting, the central bank’s rate-setting Federal Open Market Committee said it will keep its benchmark overnight borrowing rate in a range between 5.25%-5.5% until then. 

Additionally, the government has also avoided another shut down as a series of rushed bills had approved spending for the government by another 1.2 trillion dollars. This is good news for lending markets as the debt ceiling has previously tied up rate decisions in the past.

FOMC Rate Decision

Federal Open Market Committee has stated it will maintain the current interest rate for central banks and will keep its benchmark overnight borrowing rate in a range between 5.25%-5.5%.

Existing Home Sales

The numbers: Home sales rose in February as home buyers snapped up a slew of new listings. Sales activity posted the biggest increase since February 2023. Sales of previously owned homes rose by 9.5% to an annualized rate of 4.38 million in February, the National Association of Realtors said Thursday.

Primary Mortgage Market Survey Index

• 15-Yr FRM rates are seeing an increase by +0.05% with the current rate at 6.21%
• 30-Yr FRM rates are seeing an increase by +0.13% with the current rate at 6.87%

MND Rate Index

• 30-Yr FHA rates are seeing a -0.20% decrease for this week. Current rates at 6.40%
• 30-Yr VA rates are seeing a -0.20% decrease for this week. Current rates at 6.42%

Jobless Claims

Initial Claims were reported to be 210,000 compared to the expected claims of 213,000. The prior week landed at 212,000.

What’s Ahead

As of this week, the only thing to watch out for is the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) index, which is the Federal Reserve’s preferred measure of inflation outside of the CPI and PPI data releases. We will also be seeing initial estimates for the first quarter GDP estimates, gauging the total growth of the economy.