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As the weather warms up and we head into the homebuying season, high mortgage rates should keep home prices from rising too fast. See more mortgage rates on Zillow Real Estate on ZillowMortgage CalculatorUse our free mortgage calculator to see how today's mortgage rates would impact your monthly payments. 15-year Fixed Mortgage RatesLast week, average 15-year mortgage rates were 6.21%, a five-basis-point increase from the previous week, according to Freddie Mac data. Mortgage rates started ticking up from historic lows in the second half of 2021 and increased over three percentage points in 2022. Once the Fed cuts rates, mortgage rates should fall even further.

Persons: Selma Hepp, you'll, Freddie Mac, it's Organizations: Zillow, Federal Reserve Locations: Chevron

☆ The way NFL games start has drastically changed. Here’s everything you need to know
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-27 | by ( Samuel Joseph | Sam Joseph | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

This came after owners shook up the rule book by voting to outlaw the controversial ‘hip-drop’ tackle the day prior. Then in 2023, the NFL announced that the returning team would be able to signal for a fair catch to advance to the 25. These alterations – combined with the significant injury risk that the kicking team posed by running at full speed towards the returning team – saw the incentive to return the ball dwindle. Similarly, if the ball goes through and out of the end zone, it will be a touchback to the 30-yard line. “I think it will be a big improvement,” NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said, according to the league.

Persons: –, Scott Taetsch, it’s, Tyler Scott, You’ve, Punt, Roger Goodell, ” Goodell, ”, “, we’ll, Dameon Pierce, Richard Rodriguez, Dan Campbell Organizations: CNN, NFL, XFL, league’s, of Fame, Chicago Bears, Houston Texans, ESPN, Getty Images Detroit Lions

Mortgage interest rates have decreased in recent days after climbing last week. Mortgage interest rates aren't directly tied to the Fed rate. See more mortgage rates on Zillow Real Estate on ZillowMortgage CalculatorUse our free mortgage calculator to see how today's mortgage rates will affect your monthly and long-term payments. Now that the Fed has paused hiking rates, mortgage rates have come down a bit. Once the Fed starts cutting rates, which is likely to happen this year, mortgage rates should fall even further.

Persons: Freddie Mac Organizations: Reserve, Zillow, Federal Reserve, Fed Locations: Chevron

Today, 30-year mortgage rates are hovering in the mid-6% range, according to Zillow data. As inflation slows and the Fed is able to lower rates, mortgage rates are expected to go down, too. See more mortgage rates on Zillow Real Estate on ZillowMortgage Refinance Rates TodayMortgage type Average rate today This information has been provided by Zillow. See more mortgage rates on Zillow Real Estate on ZillowMortgage CalculatorUse our free mortgage calculator to see how today's mortgage rates will affect your monthly and long-term payments. This is good news for mortgage rates — as inflation slows and the Federal Reserve is able to start cutting the federal funds rate, mortgage rates are expected to trend down as well.

Persons: Fannie Mae Organizations: Reserve, Zillow, Federal Reserve, Mortgage, Association, ARM Locations: Chevron

CNN —Tensions between the US and Israel were exposed on Monday when Washington stood aside and allowed the UN Security Council to pass a resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. Its position evolved last week when on Friday, it put forward a ceasefire resolution tied tied to the release of hostages. The US abstention on Monday’s vote allowed the latest resolution to pass, when the other 14 members of the 15-strong council voted yes. While resolutions made by the UN Security Council are legally binding, they can be – and have been in the past – ignored, as the UN enforcement mechanisms are limited. UN Secretary-General António Guterres said a failure to implement the resolution would be “unforgivable.”“The Security Council just approved a long-awaited resolution on Gaza, demanding an immediate ceasefire, and the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages.

Persons: Washington, Benjamin Netanyahu, United Nations Linda Thomas, Greenfield, “, António Guterres, ”, ” Guterres, Tzachi Hanegbi, Ron Dermer, Netanyahu, John Kirby, “ We’re, Israel, Barak Ravid’s, Basem Naeim, “ Israel, ” Naeim Organizations: CNN, UN Security Council, Israel’s, US, United Nations, Security, UN, Twitter, National Security Locations: Israel, Gaza, Russia, China, Washington, Gaza’s, Rafah, ”, Doha

Mortgage rates have been elevated over the last couple of months. Thirty-year mortgage rates have averaged 6.50% in March, just two basis points below where they were in February. Forecasters at the Mortgage Bankers Association, Fannie Mae, the National Association of Realtors, and elsewhere have been predicting that mortgage rates will start trending lower soon. The sooner the Fed can start cutting rates, the sooner mortgage rates will start to fall. This means your entire monthly mortgage payment, including taxes and insurance, shouldn't exceed 28% of your pre-tax monthly income.

Persons: Fannie Mae, they've, you'll Organizations: Mortgage Bankers Association, National Association of Realtors, Federal Reserve, Zillow, Mortgage, Association, Sky Locations: Chevron

Though they spiked up earlier this week, mortgage rates have inched down over the past few days and are in line with last week's levels. Once the Fed cuts rates, mortgage rates should start to trend down, too. See more mortgage rates on Zillow Real Estate on ZillowMortgage CalculatorUse our free mortgage calculator to see how today's mortgage rates would impact your monthly payments. 15-Year Fixed Mortgage Rates Back Below 6% (-0.10%)The average 15-year mortgage rate is 5.93%, down from last week. Mortgage rates also rose dramatically in 2023, though they started trending back down toward the end of the year.

Persons: they're, you'll, It's, refinance Organizations: Federal Reserve, Zillow, FHA Locations: Chevron

The announcement is unlikely to have much of an impact on mortgage rates, but commentary coming out of the meeting might. If Powell says that the Fed still believes that inflation is coming down and that it just wants to see more data before it starts cutting rates, mortgage rates might not move much. See more mortgage rates on Zillow Real Estate on ZillowMortgage Refinance Rates TodayMortgage type Average rate today This information has been provided by Zillow. See more mortgage rates on Zillow Real Estate on ZillowMortgage CalculatorUse our free mortgage calculator to see how today's mortgage rates will affect your monthly and long-term payments. This is good news for mortgage rates — as inflation slows and the Federal Reserve is able to start cutting the federal funds rate, mortgage rates are expected to trend down as well.

Persons: Jerome Powell, Powell, Fannie Mae Organizations: Federal, Fed, Zillow, Federal Reserve, Mortgage, Association, ARM Locations: Chevron

UBS trimmed its price target on Tesla to $165 from $225, implying shares will hover around current levels for the foreseeable future. Nvidia shares have rallied more than 83% this year, building on 2024's nearly 239% gain as investors continue to bet on artificial intelligence. The firm holds an overweight rating on the stock, with its $820 price target implying about 11% downside from Wednesday's close. — Samantha Subin 5:38 a.m.: UBS trims Tesla price target, cites downside risks to deliveries UBS cut its price target on Tesla to $165 from $225 a share, citing slower electric vehicle demand in the U.S. and Europe, coupled with competition concerns in China. He also raised his price target to $68 from $55, which implies upside of 18% from Tuesday's close.

Persons: Goldman Sachs, Christopher Danely, Danely, — Samantha Subin, Joseph Spak, Spak, Wells, outperformance, Richard Ramsden, Ramsden, 2026E, Fred Imbert Organizations: CNBC, UBS, Citigroup, Citi, Nvidia, Devices, Broadcom, AMD, Micron Technology, Micron, NA Locations: U.S, Europe, China, Tuesday's

☆ Goldman says it's finally time to buy this major bank turnaround story
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-14 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Goldman Sachs has a buy rating on Citigroup for the first time since 2022, as the investment bank implements a turnaround strategy that should boost shareholder returns. Goldman has raised its stock price target for Citi to $68, implying nearly 18% upside from Wednesday's close price of $57.76. Goldman expects Citigroup's revenue to grow at an accelerated compound annual rate of 4% to reach $85.7 billion by 2026. Citigroup is also expected to increase share buybacks by $1 billion in 2024 and $4 billion in 2025. The bank may have capacity for even more buybacks if Basel 3 rules are changed, it said.

Persons: Goldman Sachs, Goldman, Richard Ramsden, — CNBC's Michael Bloom Organizations: Citigroup, Citi Locations: Basel

High inflation and Federal Reserve interest rates hikes helped push mortgage rates up over the last couple of years. Now that inflation has slowed so much from its June 2022 peak, mortgage rates are expected to go down this year. See more mortgage rates on Zillow Real Estate on ZillowMortgage CalculatorUse our free mortgage calculator to see how today's mortgage rates would impact your monthly payments. Mortgage Rates for Buying a Home30-Year Fixed Mortgage Rates Go Down (-0.33%)The current average 30-year fixed mortgage rate is 6.30%, down 33 points from where it was this time last week, according to Zillow data. 20-Year Fixed Mortgage Rates Fall (-0.29%)The average 20-year fixed mortgage rate is down bit from last week, and is sitting at 6.07%.

Persons: Investing.com, you'll, It's, refinance Organizations: CPI, Zillow, FHA Locations: Chevron

Mortgage rates fell last week, and they remain low today. But as the economy continues to balance out and inflation cools, mortgage rates should trend down. In its most recent forecast, Fannie Mae predicted that 30-year mortgage rates could finally drop back down below 6% by the end of the year. See more mortgage rates on Zillow Real Estate on ZillowMortgage CalculatorUse our free mortgage calculator to see how today's interest rates will affect your monthly payments. 15-Year Fixed Mortgage RatesAverage 15-year mortgage rates inched down to 6.22% last week, according to Freddie Mac data.

Persons: There's, Fannie Mae, you'll, Freddie Mac, it's, they've Organizations: Federal Reserve, Zillow Locations: Chevron

Mortgage rates fell this week and are now back down to where they were early last month. This means that, as many experts have predicted, mortgage rates should go down in 2024. See more mortgage rates on Zillow Real Estate on ZillowMortgage CalculatorUse our free mortgage calculator to see how today's mortgage rates would impact your monthly payments. 15-year Fixed Mortgage RatesLast week, average 15-year mortgage rates were 6.22%, a four-basis-point decrease from the previous week, according to Freddie Mac data. Once the Fed cuts rates, mortgage rates should fall even further.

Persons: we're, you'll, Freddie Mac, it's Organizations: Labor Statistics, Federal Reserve, Zillow Locations: Chevron

Mortgage rates are expected to go down in 2024, but they increased in February in response to hotter-than-expected economic data. Once the Fed starts lowering rates, mortgage rates should trend down, too. In its latest forecast, Fannie Mae predicted that 30-year mortgage rates will reach 5.9% by the end of the year. See more mortgage rates on Zillow Real Estate on ZillowMortgage CalculatorUse our free mortgage calculator to see how today's mortgage rates will affect your monthly and long-term payments. Now that the Fed has paused hiking rates, mortgage rates have come down a bit.

Persons: Freddie Mac, Sam Khater, Freddie Mac's, Fannie Mae Organizations: Federal, Zillow, Federal Reserve, Fed Locations: Chevron

CNN —Two police stations near Haiti’s National Palace were attacked by armed individuals Friday night, as gang violence in the Caribbean nation’s capital of Port-au-Prince continued to spiral. Armed groups have burned down police stations and released thousands of inmates from two prisons, and Cherizier has warned of “a civil war that will end in genocide” if the prime minister does not step down. A woman cries as she walks near her husband's shop that armed gang members set fire to in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, March 7, 2024. Haiti is a member state, but it is unclear if Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry will be at the meeting. CNN has reached out to the Haitian prime minister’s office for comment.

Persons: Prince, Jimmy Cherizier, Ariel Henry’s, Cherizier, Henry, Synapoha, ” Stephane Dujarric, Clarens Siffroy, Sophie Mealier, Pierre Espérance, Ariel Henry, Jim Rogers, Rafy Rivera, Michael Conte, Abel Alvarado Organizations: CNN, Kenya, Kenyan, Haitian, Port, Caribbean Port Services, UN, Getty, Haitian Human Rights Defense Network, CARICOM, Caribbean Locations: Haiti’s, Caribbean, Port, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, Prince, Haiti, AFP, Region, Prince’s, Canada, Kingston

High inflation and Federal Reserve interest rate hikes helped push mortgage rates up to decades-long highs over the last couple of years. If next week's Consumer Price Index data comes in hotter than expected, for example, that could push mortgage rates back up. This means we may need to see a few more months of slowing inflation data before the Fed cuts rates and mortgage rates start trending down. See more mortgage rates on Zillow Real Estate on ZillowMortgage Refinance Rates TodayMortgage type Average rate today This information has been provided by Zillow. See more mortgage rates on Zillow Real Estate on ZillowMortgage CalculatorUse our free mortgage calculator to see how today's mortgage rates will affect your monthly and long-term payments.

Persons: it's, Jerome Powell, Powell, Fannie Mae Organizations: Zillow, Federal Reserve, Mortgage, Association, ARM Locations: Chevron

☆ US asks Haiti’s Prime Minister to ‘move forward’ on political transition amid turmoil
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-06 | by ( Caitlin Stephen Hu | Richard Roth | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —The US has called for “urgent” movement toward a political transition in Haiti, as gangs run amok in the nation’s capital and opposition groups demand Prime Minister Ariel Henry’s resignation. Henry landed in Puerto Rico on Tuesday after days of speculation about his whereabouts. US officials had called Henry mid-flight in an effort to persuade him to step aside in favor of a transitional administration, the report said. Ahead of the meeting, the UN’s High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk urged the international community to “act swiftly and decisively to prevent Haiti’s further descent into chaos.”“This situation is beyond untenable for the people of Haiti,” he said. “We are simply running out of time.”This is a developing story and will be updated.

Persons: Ariel Henry’s, Henry, United Nations Linda Thomas, Greenfield, we’ve, Prince, Henry’s, Jimmy Cherizier, “, ”, Ariel Henry doesn’t, Ariel Henry, ” Cherizier, Volker Türk, Haiti’s Organizations: CNN, Kenyan, Miami Herald, Herald, United Nations, Reuters, Core, UN Security, Human Locations: Haiti, Puerto Rico, Kenya, Caribbean, Washington, Dominican Republic, Dominican, Haitian, Port, United States, Canada, France

CNN —The war in Sudan is “triggering the world’s largest hunger crisis,” with more than 25 million people “trapped in a spiral” of food insecurity, a United Nations agency has warned. The war, which has also created the world’s largest displacement crisis, according to the UN, has left 18 million people “acutely food insecure” in Sudan and millions more in neighboring South Sudan and Chad. “Twenty years ago, Darfur was the world’s largest hunger crisis, and the world rallied to respond. Nearly a year into a war that has sent Sudan to the verge of collapse, the vast majority of its people are going hungry, the UN's World Food Programme says. Armed transfers that must stop,” she said, remarking that the international community “is not doing nearly enough” to address the crisis.

Persons: “, ”, Cindy McCain, –, Abdel Fattah al, Burhan, General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, EBRAHIM HAMID, United Nations Linda Thomas, Greenfield, Thomas Organizations: CNN, United Nations, Food Program, UN, Sudan’s Armed Forces, SAF, Rapid Support Forces, WFP “, WFP, Getty, Thomas, West Darfur “ Locations: Sudan, South Sudan, Chad, Darfur, East, Sudan’s, Gedaref, AFP, West Darfur

Mortgage rates have receded a bit this week, with average 30-year mortgage rates hovering around 10 basis points below last week's average at 6.59%,according to Zillow data. Depending on how some upcoming economic reports turn out, we could see mortgage rates inch down a little further in March. Now that the Fed is considering cutting rates this year, many experts believe that mortgage rates will go down soon. This is a key gauge of inflation, and the results of this report could also cause some volatility with mortgage rates. This means your entire monthly mortgage payment, including taxes and insurance, shouldn't exceed 28% of your pre-tax monthly income.

Persons: you'll, Fannie Mae Organizations: Federal Reserve, of Labor Statistics, Zillow, Mortgage, Association, Sky Locations: Chevron

Companies with upcoming IPOs can offer directed share programs to qualifying groups of retail investors to buy IPO stock. Rather than buying shares through a broker, a directed share program allows investors to buy IPO stock directly from the company. AdvertisementCompanies may offer a directed share program to employees, vendors, or, in Reddit's case, loyal users and moderators. The risk involved with directed share programsOne of the risks associated with directed share programs is that a DSP may harm the company's IPO by causing the IPO value to inflate. How to participate in Reddit's directed share programReddit began rolling out directed share program pre-registration invitations to certain users and moderators on February 22, 2024.

Persons: you'll, Reddit, Redditors, Insider's, Will McDonough, McDonough, Airbnb, Uber, —, there's, Reddit's Organizations: Companies, Corestone, New York Stock Exchange, Reddit, IPOs, DSP Locations: IPOs

☆ How Hedge Funds Are Betting on Electricity and the Changing Power Grid
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-05 | by ( Alex Morrell | Bradley Saacks | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +19 min

A onetime commodities backwater, congestion trading has become a growing business in recent years as the demand for electricity and volatility on the power grid in the US has soared. The financial category, which includes specialized power-trading companies, banks, hedge funds, and large proprietary trading firms, dominates the market, in part because the physical power firms typically operate in only one or two regions. He launched three congestion trading teams for the firm, including in California and Texas after those states introduced congestion trading in 2008 and 2010, respectively. Citadel, along with Susquehanna International Group and Tower Research, has been involved in FTR trading since the market's infancy. Volatility has been increasing on the power grid, in part because of changing weather patterns, Jeev added.

Persons: Kumar Jeev, Jane Street, Richard Roseblade, who's, There's, Roseblade, Bill Clark, Jeev, DC Energy's Tyler Kuhn, DRW, California Al Seib, Brevan Howard, Jane, Stephanie Staska, Staska, couldn't, Joe Biden's, It's, Meredith Angwin, Angwin Organizations: Business, Capital, Midwest, Citadel, Tower Research, Yes Energy, Energy, Anadolu, Getty, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, FERC, Nasdaq, York Stock Exchange, Nvidia, Johns Hopkins University, DC Energy, Wayfair, Squarepoint, Appian, Boston Energy, Susquehanna International Group, DC, Bloomberg, Commodities, Traders, Wall Street, Workers, GreenHat Energy, JPMorgan, Hill Energy Resource & Services, P, Grid, & $ Locations: Wall, East Coast, DRW, Susquehanna, FTRs, New York, Canada, Texas, Virginia, California, Berlin, Chicago, Oregon, California Al, Ukraine, Russian, Uri, Northern Virginia

Mortgage rates are forecast to go down in 2024, but they've actually increased a bit so far this year. Mortgage rates first started rising early in 2022 in response to high inflation and expectations that the Federal Reserve would hike rates to combat price growth. See more mortgage rates on Zillow Real Estate on ZillowMortgage CalculatorUse our free mortgage calculator to see how today's mortgage rates would impact your monthly payments. Mortgage Rates for Buying a Home30-Year Fixed Mortgage Rates Inch Down (-0.08%)The current average 30-year fixed mortgage rate is 6.54%, down just eight points from where it was this time last week, according to Zillow data. 15-Year Fixed Mortgage Rates Hold Steady (+0.01%)The average 15-year mortgage rate is 5.94%, just a single point up from last week.

Persons: they've, you'll, It's, refinance Organizations: Treasury, Federal, Zillow, FHA Locations: Chevron

Mortgage rates have been holding steady after rising last month, and they could stay near their current levels throughout March. This means that mortgage rates will likely remain elevated for at least a few more months. But investor expectations how of Fed rate changes could impact the broader economy can push mortgage rates up or down. See more mortgage rates on Zillow Real Estate on ZillowMortgage CalculatorUse our free mortgage calculator to see how today's interest rates will affect your monthly payments. 15-Year Fixed Mortgage RatesAverage 15-year mortgage rates inched down to 6.26% last week, according to Freddie Mac data.

Persons: you'll, Freddie Mac, it's, they've Organizations: Federal Reserve, Zillow Locations: Chevron

☆ UN team finds ‘convincing’ information that hostages in Gaza were raped
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-04 | by ( Richard Roth | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

United Nations CNN —A United Nations team has found “clear and convincing” information that hostages in Gaza were sexually abused, Pramila Patten, the UN special envoy on sexual violence in conflict told reporters on Monday. There are “reasonable grounds” to believe the sexual violence is ongoing, she added. The UN team, which was led by Patten, visited Israel between January 29 to February 14 for a mission “aimed at gathering, analyzing, and verifying information on conflict-related sexual violence” during October 7 and its aftermath, according to a 24-page report. The mission was not able to meet with any victims of sexual violence on October 7 “despite our efforts,” Patten said. But we received information that a handful of them were receiving very specialized trauma treatment and were not prepared to come forward,” she said.

Persons: Pramila Patten, Patten, “, ” Patten, ” Organizations: United Nations CNN, United Nations, UN, Hamas Locations: Gaza, Israel, Al, Aqsa

This week, we'll be getting two big pieces of labor market data that could have an impact on mortgage rates. This means it's possible we'll see mortgage rates start to ease right as the homebuying season is heating up. See more mortgage rates on Zillow Real Estate on ZillowMortgage CalculatorUse our free mortgage calculator to see how today's mortgage rates would impact your monthly payments. 15-year Fixed Mortgage RatesLast week, average 15-year mortgage rates were 6.26%, a three-basis-point decrease from the previous week, according to Freddie Mac data. Once the Fed cuts rates, mortgage rates should fall even further.

Persons: we'll, you'll, Freddie Mac, it's Organizations: Labor, Zillow, Federal Reserve Locations: Chevron

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