Interest Rates Up 26% in the Past 6 Weeks

By: Patrick Carlisle

COMPASS

Chief Market Analyst

San Francisco Bay Area

Due to a number of factors - inflation, international developments and other issues - serious increases in interest rates have continued in 2022, hitting 3.92% in the past week (up 26% in the past 6 weeks), according to Freddie Mac. Below are 3 angles on interest rates, plus the latest inflation reading for January (which hit a 40-year high). Interest rates can change very rapidly up or down, and it's extremely difficult to predict those changes with any accuracy. Whether these changes shall continue, the magnitude of such changes, and how exactly they might (or might not) affect the market is still developing.

Chart showing 30-year mortgage rates from 2016 to 2022, rising to 3.92% in February 2022.

Consumer Price Index chart showing inflation reaching 7.5% in January 2022, its highest point in 40 years.

Chart of 30-year and 15-year mortgage rates, showing a sharp rise near February 2022.

Bar chart of 30-year mortgage rates from 1981 to February 2022, showing a long decline followed by a recent increase.

And financial market turbulence has continued, as delineated in this snapshot of YTD S&P 500 movements:

S&P 500 year-to-date chart showing a decline to 4,356.01 by February 18.

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