Good evening, you're tuned in to Markets Desk.
The housing market is absorbing another serious blow tonight, as the thirty-year fixed mortgage rate has climbed to seven point one seven percent, its highest level in nearly two years. The move tracks directly with the ten-year Treasury yield breaching the five percent threshold earlier this week, a psychologically significant level that tightens financial conditions across the board and further squeezes would-be buyers already priced out of a historically unaffordable market.
On the monetary policy front, a growing chorus of prominent economists is urging the Federal Reserve to hold its hand before any additional rate increases. Their concern is that while headline data may appear resilient, the underlying economy carries real vulnerabilities — from consumer credit stress to softening labor demand — and that the Fed risks overcorrecting into a contraction it cannot easily reverse.
Meanwhile, the debate over artificial intelligence regulation is turning sharply political. President Trump is dismissing calls for an AI slowdown as a, quote, sick conspiracy, and a hoax, drawing comparisons to what he describes as past political scams. The pushback targets Anthropic's chief executive, who recently urged the industry to adopt stronger safety guardrails, a position now drawing fire from both the White House and figures like Michael Burry.
That's the tape. Markets Desk, signing off the floor.
