News
Market Watch | 30-year-mortgage rate rises to 4.33%
Rising for a second week, the average rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage increased to 4.33% in the week that ended Feb. 20 from 4.28% in the prior week, according to a Thursday report from federally controlled mortgage buyer Freddie Mac
FOX Business | Mid-Atlantic Manufacturing Activity Plunges in February
The Philadelphia Fed reports manufacturing activity in the mid-Atlantic region contracted in February with its gauge coming in at -6.3, from 9.4 in January, far below Wall Street’s estimate of 8. Readings above 0 point to expansion while those below point to contraction.
Market Watch | Philly manufacturing index takes big dive in February
Philadelphia-area manufacturers reported worsening conditions in February, a reading that contradicted an upbeat national manufacturing purchasing managers index for the month released earlier in the morning.
Econ Comments & Analysis
Real Clear Markets | Twenty Years After NAFTA, Obama Must Lead In the Toluca Two Step
Mexico's President Enrique Peña Nieto hosts his first North American Leaders Summit in Toluca this week. Twenty years after NAFTA took effect, the United States, Canada and Mexico share more than $1 trillion in trade along tightly integrated supply chains fueled by a dynamic sharing of ideas, research and innovation. Supporting the regional economy are more than 320 million legal border crossings each year.
WSJ | Private Capital for Public Works
The budget deal and $1.1 trillion spending bill agreed to by Congress and the White House should help our country climb out of recession. We also hope the compromise and common sense displayed by these agreements mean Washington can next tackle what's really needed to assure robust economic growth and full employment—the rebuilding of public infrastructure.
Fortune | Is the housing recovery losing steam?
The latest data suggest that the promised construction boom may not materialize.
