At the time I am writing this, mortgage interest rates are almost 1/4th of a percent lower than they were last Friday.

This week was employment week with ADP employment estimates on Wednesday and the official numbers today. The unemployment figures released today showed that the unemployment rate had dropped, but the job creation numbers were only about half of the estimates. The drop in the unemployment rate was most likely to people giving up or taking part time jobs thus decreasing the rate. The way we calculate the unemployment rate is widely known for being flawed and the actual rate is much higher. Also on Thursday the unemployment claims figures were released and claims increased for the first time in a few months.

The Federal Reserve (FED) president Ben Bernanke has stated that they will continue to keep rates low as long as unemployment rate is above 6%. During the last few months unemployment had actually been going down, but this week's reversal is good news for interest rates.

Also in the news this week has been North Korea and their threats of nuclear war. I don't think many people other than the media are taking them seriously, but it still might cause some investors to get nervous and move money to bonds which will be good for rates.

For the last few months it has looked like our economy was getting back on track and the outlook for rates was higher. With all the negative news over the last 2 weeks that trend has reversed and it appears that we will be able to enjoy these low rates for a while longer. I would caution those borrowers looking for even lower rates to not wait too long and miss the boat on these low rates.