Rates faced upward pressure Wednesday in volatile trading. In economic news, the National Association of Realtors reported that July Existing Home Sales rose by 6.5% to 5.39 million annual units, beating expectations. The data mostly reflects purchase contracts written in May and June, as mortgage rates began rising. Minutes from last month’s Fed meeting showed broad support among Federal Open Market Committee members for plans to begin tapering bond purchases, also known as “quantitative easing”, in the near future. Mortgage-backed securities sold off quickly following the report:
No other key economic data will be released today.