Mortgage rates held steady Friday morning following the release of mixed economic data. The economy added 209,000 jobs in July, below the consensus forecast of 230,000. The Unemployment Rate rose to 6.2%. Average Hourly Earnings came in below expectations. Still, this represents the sixth straight month with job gains exceeding 200,000, indicating steady improvement in the labor market. Separately, the Core PCE index, a preferred measure of inflation by the Fed, was 1.5% higher than one year ago. Personal Income matched forecast. Construction Spending fell 1.8% in June. An increase of 0.5% had been expected. The Institute for Supply Management manufacturing index increased to 57.1, beating expectations. Readings above 50.0 indicate expansion in the manufacturing sector of the economy. Consumer Sentiment rose to 81.8, a bit lower than expected. No other key data will be released today.