The bond market has slipped well into negative ground after the stock markets have moved well off earlier lows. The Dow is currently up 65 points after being down slightly earlier. The Nasdaq is still in negative ground but is close to the high of the day. The bond market is currently down 9/32, which will likely cause afternoon upward revisions to mortgage rates of approximately .125 - .250 of a discount point from this morning's rates.

This week is moderately active in terms of economic news scheduled for release. There are five reports scheduled, but only two of them carry the potential to cause noticeable movement in mortgage rates. Accordingly, there is a decent possibility of seeing a relatively calm week in the mortgage market, assuming that the stock markets do the same.

The Conference Board, who is a New York-based business research group, gave us today's only economic data. They reported t hat their Leading Economic Indicators (LEI) rose 1.4% last month, exceeding forecasts of a 1.0% increase. This means that the index is predicting rapid growth in economic activity over of the next several months, which can be considered negative news for the bond market and mortgage rates. However, since this data is considered to be only moderately important, its impact on this morning's rates was fairly minimal.

There is no relevant data scheduled for release tomorrow or Wednesday. Look for the stock markets to heavily influence bond trading and mortgage pricing the next couple of days. If the major stock indexes rally, bonds could suffer and push mortgage rates higher. Thursday or Friday will likely end up being the most important day of the week with the Producer Price Index (PPI) and Durable Goods reports being released respectively.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 da ys... Float if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Float if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Float if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now... This is only my opinion of what I would do if I were financing a home. It is only an opinion and cannot be guaranteed to be in the best interest of all/any other borrowers.