FNMA 4.5% actually picked up 81 BPS!!! Money came out of the mattresses today! The T-note auction went well, our Mortgage backed securities are UP...Oil and other commodities were UP! DOW was up 172 points! Rates coming in at about 5.125% range this afternoon. Tomorrow may bring profit taking so it will be interesting to see what the rates do.
Remember profit taking is when an investment grows rapidly and investors "sell" to preserve their profit. The "sell-off" usually erodes pricing and investors then buy back into the investment at a price cheaper than they sold it for.
OIL UP: Nigeria saw an attack on a Shell Refinery which drove up the price of oil today among other factors. (Positive outlook, stronger dollar etc.) Crude is trading at $70.23/barrel.
BERNANKE Dancing? Some pretty interesting allegations that the central bank PUSHED Bank of America into purchasing Merrill Lynch have surfaced in the last several weeks. An investigation found that the central bank did not break any laws in their negotiations or attempts to have B of A "STRONGLY consider" purchasing the investment firm. Bernanke gave testimony and reported today. To see more: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/bernanke-fed-didnt-act-improperly-on-merrill
INITIAL Jobless claims... Came in higher than expected...and ongoing claims are still at a record high.
FINAL GDP at -5.5% (Indicates a 5.5% CONTRACTION...so LOWER. Remember that a "recession" or "depression" is defined by negative growth over time. To get "out" of the recession: we need GDP growth. There has not as of yet been much focus there...despite the HUGE amount of money being pushed around.)
Un-related events: Both Michael Jackson and Farah Fawcett passed away today...
