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Regular Savings0.320.24 CUs by 8 bp
Interest Checking0.230.18 CUs by 5 bp
Money Market0.530.37 CUs by 16 bp
1 Year CD1.010.83 CUs by 18 bp
 
Reg Credit Card11.6912.23 CUs by 54 bp
48 Mo New Car4.455.7 CUs by 125 bp
48 Mo Used Car4.716.21 CUs by 150 bp
36 Mo Unsecured10.5412.21 CUs by 167 bp
 
Home EQ LOC4.394.79 CUs by 40 bp
1 Yr ARM3.513.85 CUs by 34 bp
30 Yr Fixed4.554.54 Bks by 1 bp

All Data Current as of 09/01/2010. Based on 15634 institutions. Note: Average rates are listed; individual rates will vary. (See Datatrac Research Standards)

bp=Basis points (100 bp=1%)

Click here for customized, local rate intelligence services.

Market News

MADISON, Wis. (9/2/10)

  • Mortgage loan application volume for the week ended Aug. 27 increased 2.7% on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier, according to the Market Composite Index, part of the Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey, released Wednesday by the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA). On an unadjusted basis, the Index rose 2.3%. The Refinance Index went up 2.8% and is at its highest level since May 1, 2009. The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index increased 1.8% from one week earlier. The unadjusted Purchase Index decreased 0.4% and was 37% lower than the same week one year ago. "Refinancing activity picked up again last week, reaching new 15-month highs, as borrowers took advantage of even lower mortgage rates," said Michael Fratantoni, MBA vice president of research and economics. "The drop in mortgage rates was in line with Treasury rates as the latest data continue to show weak economic growth and an exceptionally weak housing market." For the MBA report, use the link ...

  • U.S. companies unexpectedly cut workers in August, and employment dropped by 10,000--the first decline since January--according to figures released Wednesday by ADP Employer Services (Bloomberg.com Sept. 1). Economists had forecast a gain of 15,000, according to a Bloomberg News survey. Job losses raise the specter that consumer spending--70% of the U.S. economy--will slide and halt the economic recovery, Bloomberg said. "The labor market is really in peril as businesses are just being cautious," said David Semmens, an economist at Standard Chartered Bank. "[These figures] will drag down expectations for the Friday payroll reports. The stability surrounding the recovery is declining." In a related matter, announced job cuts dropped to a 10-year low of 34,768 in August---seeming to go against the current of a slowing economic recovery, according to Challenger, Gray and Christmas Inc. (Moody's Economy.com Sept. 1). The data suggest that firms are operating very lean and have little to cut as the economic recovery weakens, Moody's said ...

  • Manufacturing has led the economic recovery and likely will keep it from fading, as it expanded at a more rapid pace in August than expected, according to numbers released by the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) (Bloomberg.com Sept. 1). The ISM's manufacturing (factory) index rose to 56.3 in August from 55.5 in July. Economists had forecast a decline to 52.8, according to a Bloomberg News survey. Readings greater than 50 indicate growth. "The manufacturing sector has maintained its momentum at least through August," said Zach Pandl, an economist at Nomura Securities International Inc. in New York. "[The report] makes clear the economy is not slipping into recession any time [soon], but [it's] still reasonable to be concerned about where we're heading over the next three to six months." This most recent ISM survey may help allay fears that the economic recovery was rapidly deteriorating midway through this quarter, ISM said (Moody's Economy.com Sept. 1) ...

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News of the Competition

MADISON, Wis. (9/2/10)

  • In efforts to get customers to use the bank for their primary accounts, Citigroup Inc. said it will reduce fees on its U.S. banking accounts (Bloomberg.com Sept. 1). Customers with Citigold accounts can sidestep monthly fees if they maintain $50,000 in combined balances at Citigroup, beginning Nov. 1. The bank also intends to eliminate fees for some account-holders at the basic level, with more specific information forthcoming, Bloomberg said. Also, Citigroup announced Wednesday that it intends to nearly triple its work force in China to roughly 12,000 employees during the next three years (The Wall Street Journal Sept. 1). The plan is a "reflection of the fact that China is one our priority markets around the world, and we intend to continue to strongly grow our business in China," said Stephen Thomas, Citigroup spokesman ...

  • Failed investment bank Lehman Brothers might have survived if U.S. financial regulators had made different decisions, Richard Fuld, former Lehman CEO, said Wednesday in prepared testimony for a hearing before the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission. "Uncontrollable market forces" that led to Lehman's downfall also threatened other banks, Fuld said. "But Lehman was the only firm that was mandated by government regulators to file for bankruptcy," he added. "The government then was forced to intervene to protect those other firms and their entire financial system." Lehman proposed options to regulators that would have provided the bank relief and possibly averted its September 2008 implosion, Fuld said (The New York Times Sept. 1). The options included allowing Lehman to become a bank holding company, Fuld said in testimony. In a related matter, United Kingdom bank Barclays PLC said it had asked the Federal Reserve if the U.S. government would guarantee liabilities Barclays assumed when it bought the brokerage unit of the bankrupt Lehman in September 2008 (Bloomberg News Sept. 1). The U.S. told Barclays no aid would be available, Victor Lekow, who represented Barclays in the Lehman deal, testified Tuesday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Manhattan ...

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