Fed Talk
What is mostly driving bond trading this morning is Chairman Powell’s speech at the Jackson Hole Fed Conference. He stated that the economy has some challenges to deal with. Specifically, he noted slower economic activity in China and Germany, the potential hard Brexit where Britain leaves the European Union on October 31 without a deal made, volatile stocks and geopolitical issues. Those hurdles all could contribute to a weaker global economy that will undoubtedly affect ours to some degree, at the very least. Since bonds become more appealing to investors during weaker economic conditions, we are seeing bonds and mortgage rates react favorably to this news.