There was little economic data this morning to end the week. Headed into next week, Stocks and Bonds are trading near unchanged levels in quiet trading. Next week, the Bond markets close early on Friday for the unofficial kickoff to the summer in observance of Memorial Day, where all markets will be closed on May 27.

The ongoing scandal at the IRS continues today with Congressional hearings set to begin on Capital Hill. It is alleged that the IRS was targeting certain conservative groups for increased scrutiny when applying for tax-exempt status. There are two witnesses scheduled for today – Steven Miller acting IRS commissioner who has been forced to resign by President Obama, and J. Russell George, the Treasury inspector general for tax administration.

The ongoing Bond buying program by the U.S. Federal Reserve took a hit yesterday from one of its proponents. San Francisco Fed Bank President John Williams, usually considered dovish when it comes to monetary policy, said that due to the recent uptick in the labor markets, he feels that the easy money policies should start to taper down by late this year. Mr. Williams said that the $85B a month QEIII program should end by late this year, but he did say that he will have to see a sustained improvement in the job markets in order for the Fed to stop buying Bonds.

A dove, when it comes to monetary policy, promotes monetary policies that involves the maintenance of low interest rates. The term is derived from the docile and placid nature of the bird of the same name, and is the opposite of the term “hawk”.

This week’s economic calendar is packed full of reports that could surely impact trading in the capital markets. Readings on manufacturing, inflation at the wholesale and consumer level, housing figures, weekly claims and consumer sentiment will give investors a broad look at the U.S. economy. Both Stocks and Bonds are lower this morning to start the trading week. Losses can also be seen in the price of oil as a report showed that demand declined in China along with the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries boosting output. [Read more…]

The job market continues to hear good news as Americans filing for first time unemployment benefits fell to the lowest level since January of 2008. The Department of Labor reported that Weekly Initial Jobless Claims fell by 4,000 in the latest week to 323,000 and below the 336,000 that was expected. The labor markets have been steadily improving, especially with people filing for unemployment checks. [Read more…]

Big changes may be ahead for the mortgage markets. Today, the head of the Mortgage Bankers Association stated today that he feels that federal policy makers should merge the Mortgage Backed Securities issued by Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae in an effort to begin replacing the Government Sponsored Entities (GSEs) and coming up with one new company. Regulators say that merging the two could begin the transition toward a much larger mortgage market overhaul. [Read more…]