Mortgage rates top 8%, slowdown feared

Mortgage rates have crept above 8 percent for the first time in two years, causing predictions of a slowdown in the U.S. housing boom and mortgage refinancings that could ripple throughout the economy.

The jump to an 8 percent mortgage rate has stemmed primarily from a similar rise in the interest rates of 10-year U.S. Treasury bonds. The two rates generally mirror one anothers' movements because most mortgages are resold as investment products known as mortgage-backed securities, which compete for investment dollars with various types of bonds, including the 10-year Treasury.

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