Retail sales jumped in December, but the report showed signs of a slowdown. Producer price growth was minimal, but the report did have some caution flags. And existing-home sales jumped to an almost-three year hugh as rates fell and home price growth slowed.

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A return to a more typical mortgage day, with rates holding steady after the final CPI report came in slightly better than expected, though not without a few caution flags. Meanwhile, new home sales unexpectedly stayed near three-year highs, driven largely by continued strength in the South.

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SUMMARY: Mortgage rates moved lower after President Trump said last week that he was directing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to purchase $200 billion in mortgage-backed securities. Late Sunday, news broke that the Department of Justice had opened a criminal inquiry into Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. Markets largely brushed off the development on Monday, but the investigation could become a factor for rates depending on how it unfolds.

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SUMMARY: Rates rose slightly on Thursday, as jobless claims rose to start 2026. Despite the rise, jobless claims were at the third-lowest level in the last 12 months. The trade deficit fell to a 16-year low as tariffs continue to make imports unattractive…

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SUMMARY: President Donald Trump sent the housing sector into a tizzy as he tweeted that he wanted to ban large institutional investors from buying more single-family homes to help with affordability. Rates fell slightly as job openings fell to the lowest level in 13 months and private payrolls came in under economist projections.

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SUMMARY: The slowest news day of the year left mortgage rates essentially unchanged, but it did create space to focus on an unusual fight in New York City, where the city is attempting to block the sale of bankrupt rent-stabilized apartment buildings on the grounds that the properties are incapable of generating a profit.

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SUMMARY: Bond yields fall slightly as investors seek the safety of bonds as global unrest ramps up after the US removed Nicolas Maduro from power in Venezuela. The final manufacturing report of 2025 shows activity remaining in contraction territory for the 10th straight month.

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SUMMARY: Two jobs reports give one picture of a weakening labor market, retail sales fail to keep pace with inflation, and it looks like Chris Waller is back in the hunt for possible Fed chair...

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SUMMARY: Rates rose last week as markets realized the Fed rate cut cycle was ending and might not start up again until mid-2026, and it’s a busy week for data as we get three central bank decisions, two jobs reports, one inflation report in a pear tree...

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SUMMARY: While job openings rose slightly to a 6-month high, quits fell to the lowest level since April 2020, highlighting that workers do not feel good about the current labor market. PLUS: Nick Timiraos writes in the journal that Powell is likely to secure a cut at this meeting, but no one knows what could happen in 2026...

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