Last week we saw the Dow and S&P 500 have their worst week in 5 years. And the media declared the housing woe as the biggest threat to our collective economic security. I know I’m exaggerating the media’s exaggeration here because last week I also read that the economy was growing at the fastest pace in a year. Last week CNN Money declared that we are now at “The end of the credit party†and experts said there were signs of bigger problems to come.
What can we expect this week? No one really knows the specifics but, there are some key reports coming out which will affect the mortgage market in general. Here are the important ones:
- Tuesday July 31st: Personal Consumption Expenditures and Core PCE (this is a measure of core inflation which excludes fuel and food costs)
- Friday August 3rd: Unemployment Rate, Hourly Earnings, Average Work Week and Non-farm Payrolls (all of these reports impact bonds)