First on the OP article, the only mention of cutting interest rates since the Fed lowered them by 0.5 percentage points on Sept 18 and 0.25 points on Nov. 7:
Some retailers, such as Macy’s, Nordstrom and TJX, have since passed on the 0.5 percentage point cut that the Federal Reserve implemented in September to cardholders. Still, their APRs are at record highs, sitting between 2 and 2.25 percentage points higher than they were a year ago.
I wrote this in the Economy Group today:
I don't know, but most interest rates have RISEN since the Fed's cuts
The Fed cut rates on Sept 18 by 0.50 percentage points and on Nov 7 by 0.25 percentage points. These are very short term rates - overnight rates that banks lend to each other. That generally affects longer short-term rates, and even intermediate term rates.
But, surprisingly, since Sept 18, the 10 year Treasury yield has risen from 3.74% to 4.41% (and bonds have fallen in value accordingly.).
And, by the way, the yield was 4.43% at the 11/5 election day close, before the election night results Nakba began to unfold, so it's actually a drop (teeny one) since pre-election.
Even the 1 year yield has risen from 3.97% to 4.41%
Its only short term yields that have fallen (and their corresponding securities' prices risen), e.g. the 3 month Treaury yield has fallen from 4.73% to 4.54%.
The average rate on a 30-year mortgage in the US rises to highest level since July, AP, 11/21/24
https://apnews.com/article/mortgage-rates-housing-interest-financing-home-loan-99fa3ab40bf2ad2cad1e554683e70d54
Treasury rates (graphs):
10 Year: https://www.cnbc.com/quotes/US10Y
1 Year: https://www.cnbc.com/quotes/US1Y
3 month: https://www.cnbc.com/quotes/US3m
Kiplinger's explains this counterintuitive phenomenon by saying the economy is stronger than what was anticipated a couple months ago (which tends to push up yields), and there's been a bit of an upturn in inflation too, after months of falling.
People who own intermediate term bonds (like me) or longer term, or even as low as 1 year maturity have seen their bond values slaughtered. I was so hopeful that the bleeding would stop with the rate cuts, but no, the blood is gushing out even faster.
I don't know who the "bond vigilantes" are, but I feel like I've been "vigilanteed".
We'll have more of the same if the tariff fuckheads cause inflation to reheat. (Or the opposite if they screw the economy up enough to cause a real recession).
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