US mortgage rates rose to near two-month highs last week

According to Odaily, US mortgage rates rose to near two-month highs last week, dragging down homebuying activity. Data released by the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) on Wednesday showed that for the week ending May 15, the contract rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage rose 10 basis points to 6.56%, slightly below the 6.57% recorded at the end of March.

Since the outbreak of the Iran war at the end of February, the rate has increased by nearly half a percentage point. The purchase loan application index fell 4.1%, marking its biggest drop since the week ending March 20. The MBA refinance index also edged lower. (Jin Shi)