| Last | Change | Percent | |
| S&P Futures | 1856.7 | 7.3 | 0.39% |
| Eurostoxx Index | 3094.9 | 42.0 | 1.37% |
| Oil (WTI) | 100 | 0.4 | 0.44% |
| LIBOR | 0.234 | -0.001 | -0.32% |
| US Dollar Index (DXY) | 80.05 | 0.111 | 0.14% |
| 10 Year Govt Bond Yield | 2.75% | 0.02% | |
| Current Coupon Ginnie Mae TBA | 104.8 | 0.0 | |
| Current Coupon Fannie Mae TBA | 103.8 | -0.1 | |
| RPX Composite Real Estate Index | 200.7 | -0.2 | |
| BankRate 30 Year Fixed Rate Mortgage | 4.85 |
US futures are following European markets higher. Bonds and MBS are down.
Some economic data this morning: New home sales fell 3.3% in Feb to an annualized 440k. Consumer Confidence increased from 78.3 to 82.3, while the Richmond Fed Manufacturing Index fell a point to -7. I suspect weather played a role in the new home sales and Richmond Fed numbers.
The FHFA house Price Index rose .5% in January, a little lower than expected. Case-Shiller rose 13.24% YOY, slightly below expectations. The Black Knight (formerly known as Lender Processing Services) home price index was flat in Jan, but up 8% year over year. They have home prices within 14% of the June 2006 peak. Note that in the Black Knight survey, the Northeastern states (NY, NJ) are starting to wake up.
Charles Plosser was surprised by the market's reaction to the FOMC statement. Punchline: We should be talking about economic conditions, not timelines. FWIW, I was surprised as well. 6 months after the end of tapering (which will presumably happen at the Dec FOMC meeting) puts you at the June FOMC meeting. Since most forecasts have the Fed funds rate increasing sometime in 2015, an early forecast of a June 15 hike doesn't seem all that surprising. A lot can happen in 15 months. Plosser would like to see the Fed Funds rate over 2% for 2015 and over 3% for 2016.
The American Enterprise Institute has weighed in on Johnson-Crapo (the replacement for the GSEs). Part of the issue is that the affordable housing mandates don't disappear, but are moved underground, to be administered by the FMIC. The difference is that it won't be funded by HUD, it will be funded by a tax on banks, which will ultimately get passed on to borrowers. Others have pointed out that while Johnson Crapo might have issues with the left, it is going to have big issues with the right. FWIW, Dick Bove comes out in defense of the GSEs
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