Market Comment
Mortgage bond prices rose last week, pushing mortgage interest rates lower. On Tuesday, the bond market rallied following moves by China to curb growth. Oil prices fell almost immediately, providing a much-needed reprieve following the recent price spike tied to severe U.S. weather. The consumer price index data showed tame inflation, which also helped rates improve.

For the week interest rates fell by about 1/2 of a discount point.

Wednesday’s inflation data will be the most important economic release this week. Signs of stronger than expected inflation will not be good for mortgage interest rates. The bond market is closed Monday in honor of Martin Luther King Day. Interest rates may fluctuate when trading resumes after the long weekend.

Leading Economic Indicators
The index of leading economic indicators (LEI) is a weighted average of eleven economic variables that “lead” the business cycle. It is constructed for forecasting future aggregate economic activity. The eleven variables that make up the LEI measure workers’ hours, initial unemployment claims, new factory orders, vendor performance, contracts and orders for plant and equipment, new housing permits, changes in unfilled orders, prices of raw materials, stock prices, money supply and consumer expectations.

Each of the variables that comprise the index has a tendency to predict (or lead) economic activity. For example, new orders for manufactured goods, new orders for plant and equipment, and new building permits are all direct measures of the amount of future production being planned for the economy.

Analysts monitor the LEI in an effort to predict future economic growth. When the LEI report is up, mortgage market participants expect credit demand to increase and inflationary pressures to build. Thus, when the LEI report is rising, interest rates tend to rise as well.

The LEI report is a valuable forecasting device that correctly predicts most economic turning points. The percentage change in the LEI is reported monthly and is an indication of the activity that will occur within the next three to six months. The LEI tends to turn down before peaks in the business cycle. Continuous declines are generally accepted as evidence that a recession continues.

Nine of the eleven components that make up this index are known before the release of the report, so the index is easy for economists to predict. Thus, although this is important predictive data for market participants, surprises are not common with the release of this data.

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