Last week was quite for economic news. Mortgage rates and remained relatively stable, with slight variation through the week. Even the release of the FOMC meeting minutes from 1/30/13 on Wednesday didn't cause much of a stir. There were no surprised to cause rates to move either higher or lower than we anticipated. This week, however, will be packed with economic reports which may have an impact on interest rates going forward. Consumer Price Index (CPI) for January fell slightly to 0.0 percent as compared to Wall Street expectations of 0.1 percent and December’s reading of 0.1 percent. The Core CPI, which measures consumer prices exclusive of volatile food and energy sectors, was 0.3 percent for January and surpassed analyst expectations of 0.2 percent and December’s reading of 0.1 percent.
Inflation Remains Low These readings remain well below the 2.5 percent inflation level cited by the Fed as cause for concern. According to the Department of Commerce, Housing Starts for January fell to 890,000 from December’s 954,000 and below Wall Street projections of 910,000. These seasonally adjusted and annualized numbers are obtained from a sample of 844 builders selected from 17,000 newly permitted building sites. Falling construction rates could further affect low supplies of homes reported in some areas; as demand for homes increase, home prices and mortgage rates can be expected to rise.
Full Economic Calendar This Week This week's economic news schedule is full.
| Date | Time (ET) | Statistic | For | Market Expects |
| 02/26/13 | 10:00:00 AM | New Home Sales | Jan | 383K |
| 02/26/13 | 10:00:00 AM | Consumer Confidence | Feb | 62 |
| 02/27/13 | 08:30:00 AM | Durable Orders | Jan | -3.50% |
| 02/27/13 | 10:00:00 AM | Pending Home Sales | Jan | 1.00% |
| 02/28/13 | 08:30:00 AM | Initial Claims | 02/23/13 | 360K |
| 02/28/13 | 08:30:00 AM | GDP - Second Estimate | Q4 | 0.50% |
| 03/01/13 | 08:30:00 AM | Personal Income | Jan | -2.40% |
| 03/01/13 | 08:30:00 AM | Personal Spending | Jan | 0.20% |
| 03/01/13 | 08:30:00 AM | PCE Prices - Core | Jan | 0.20% |
| 03/01/13 | 09:55:00 AM | Michigan Sentiment - Final | Feb | 76.3 |
| 03/01/13 | 10:00:00 AM | ISM Index | Feb | 52.4 |
Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke is set to testify before Congress on Tuesday and Wednesday. Wednesday's news includes the Pending Home Sales Index and Durable Orders. Thursday's news includes the preliminary GDP report for Q4 2012, the Chicago Purchasing Managers Index, and weekly jobless claims. Friday brings Personal Income and Core Personal Expenditures (CPE). Consumer Sentiment, the ISM Index and Construction Spending round out the week's economic news. This week, consumers should stay in close communication with their loan officer and be ready to lock in their rates on signs of weakness, or ready to capitalize on rebate improvements if the market improves. Don't look for much of a true interest rate improvement though, the market doesn't look like it is quite ready for that.
