Posted To: Mortgage Rate WatchOver the past 30 days, interest rates have risen sharply . This is true for both mortgage rates and bond market benchmarks like 10yr Treasury yields. But another version of the 10yr Treasury yield continues to operate near all-time lows . How can rates simultaneously be rising quickly but still near all-time lows? Inflation! As we discussed last week, inflation erodes the value of bonds. As such, bond yields frequently move in response to changes in inflation expectations (higher inflation = higher rates). That correlation is easily seen in the following chart: Obviously, something changed in 2020. But what changed specifically for bonds and inflation? For starters, the Federal Reserve immediately began buying massive amounts of bonds shortly after the pandemic began. This acted to keep yields…(read more)Forward this article via email:  Send a copy of this story to someone you know that may want to read it.