Ratio of Weakness to Confirmed Explanations is Off The Charts

Ratio of Weakness to Confirmed Explanations is Off The Charts

Every year there are a few days where bonds move as if obviously inspired in spite of a distinct absence of obvious inspiration. Monday was one of those days.  Sure, there are a few "best guesses" making the rounds, but all of them are fairly easy to debate and none of them are worth the 11.5bp jump to the highest 10yr yields in almost 3 months.  News articles pointing out "the economy" or "the deficit" are grasping at straws.  These things are valid, but they wouldn't adequately account for today's sell-off.  Sometimes the explanations for these episodes become clearer in hindsight.  Other times, the mystery endures. Either way, volatility remains a big risk through mid-November. 

Market Movement Recap
09:08 AM

Sharply weaker overnight and sideways from there.  10yr up 6bps at 4.137 and MBS down a quarter point in 5.5 coupons.

11:59 AM

Snowball selling all morning.  MBS down more than 3/8ths and 10yr up 9.3bps at 4.17

03:36 PM

Still at weakest levels.  MBS down 14 ticks (.44) and 10yr up 10.6bps at 4.184

Latest Video Analysis

Ratio of Weakness to Explanations is Off The Charts

MBS & Treasury Markets
UMBS 5.5 99.56 -0.03 10YR 4.212% +0.010% 10/22/2024 12:24AM EST
First off, there's no great explanation for the extent to which bonds are losing ground this morning.  These days happen occasionally.  Sometimes an elusive market mover becomes clearer later in the day.  Other times, we're forced to rely on our best guesses. With that in mind, here's a quick catalog of usual suspects at times like this. 1. Mondays, liquidity , etc.  Mondays can be tough in the bond market as lighter liquidity greases the skids f...   READ MORE
Today's Mortgage Rates
30YR Fixed 6.82% +0.14% 15YR Fixed 6.19% +0.12% 10/21/2024
By the smallest of margins, mortgage rates are back up to levels last seen in July.  That means we've gone from being fairly close to 6% in mid-September to being nearly as close to 7% today when it comes to top tier 30yr fixed scenarios for the average lender. Today's jump was particularly quick and frustratingly lacking in satisfying explanations.  It's not the explanations make bad news any more palatable, but it's always more frustrating to be confronted wit...   READ MORE
Economic Calendar
Time Event Period Actual Forecast Prior
Tuesday, Oct 22
8:55AM Oct/19 Redbook yy (%) Oct/19 5.6%
10:00AM Oct Rich Fed manuf shipments Oct -18
10:00AM Oct Rich Fed, services index Oct -1
10:00AM Oct Rich Fed comp. index Oct -18 -21
10:00AM Fed Harker Speech
11:30AM 26-Week Bill Auction (bl) 80
11:30AM 42-Day Bill Auction (%) 4.720%
1:00PM Sep Money Supply Sep $21.18T
4:30PM Oct/18 API weekly crude stocks (ml) Oct/18 -1.58M
Wednesday, Oct 23
7:00AM Oct/18 MBA Mortgage Applications Oct/18 -17%
7:00AM Oct/18 MBA 30-yr mortgage rate (%) Oct/18 6.52%
7:00AM Oct/18 Mortgage Market Index Oct/18 230.2
7:00AM Oct/18 MBA Refi Index Oct/18 734.6
7:00AM Oct/18 MBA Purchase Index Oct/18 138.4
9:00AM Fed Bowman Speech
10:00AM Sep Exist. home sales % chg (%) Sep -2.5%
10:00AM Sep Existing home sales (ml) Sep 3.9M 3.86M
10:30AM Oct/18 EIA Distillate Stocks Change Oct/18 -3.534M
10:30AM Oct/18 EIA Distillate Fuel Production Change Oct/18 -0.234M
10:30AM Oct/18 EIA Gasoline Stocks Change Oct/18 -2.201M
10:30AM Oct/18 EIA Gasoline Production Change Oct/18 -0.941M
10:30AM Oct/18 EIA Cushing Crude Oil Stocks Change Oct/18 0.108M
10:30AM Oct/18 Crude Oil Inventory (ml) Oct/18 -2.192M
10:30AM Oct/18 EIA Heating Oil Stocks Change Oct/18 -0.343M
10:30AM Oct/18 EIA Refinery Crude Runs Change Oct/18 0.165M
10:30AM Oct/18 EIA Crude Oil Imports Change Oct/18 -1.039M
11:30AM 17-Week Bill Auction (%) 4.430%
12:00PM Fed Barkin Speech
1:00PM 20-Yr Bond Auction (bl) 13
1:00PM 20-Year Bond Auction 4.039%
2:00PM Fed Beige Book
Read My Latest Newsletter
This newsletter series spent 3 straight weeks trying to remind readers that mortgage rates could go higher after the Fed rate cut, and then several more weeks warning about the high stakes jobs report.  We had no way of knowing how the future would play out then, and that continues to be the case, but it's time to get the next big warning on the table. The past 5 months have seen... READ MORE