Springtime home shoppers may be feeling the impact of an intensifying trade war.
The average rate on a standard, 30-year fixed mortgage was 6.83% in the week ending April 17, up from 6.62% a week ago, mortgage financing provider Freddie Mac said Thursday.
That’s the largest one-week jump in mortgage rates in nearly a year.
Interest rates on home loans had been steadily falling since March, which may have encouraged some prospective buyers to enter the market at the start of peak homebuying season. But President Donald Trump’s scattered approach to tariffs and an escalating trade war with China has injected volatility into the stock market, and resulted in a sell-off in US bonds last week.
Mortgage rates track the benchmark US 10-year Treasury yield, which spiked as high as 4.5% last Wednesday. The 10-year has fallen slightly since then, trading at around 4.3% on Thursday.
The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate remains below the 7% level it had reached this time last year, though.
“At this time last year, rates reached 7.1% while purchase application demand was 13% lower than it is today, a clear sign that this year’s spring homebuying season is off to a stronger start,” said Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s chief economist.
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