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[US 30-year mortgage rate rises to 14-month high, global bond yields climb, exacerbating housing pressure] (1) Affected by the continued rise in global bond yields, the US 30-year fixed mortgage rate rose to 6.76% this week, higher than last week's 6.71%, the highest level since the week ending June 26, 2025 (6.77%). Before the US-Israel war against Iran, the rate was below 6% in the last week of February this year, and has since continued to climb and gradually approached 7%; it has only broken through 7% once in the past two years, reaching 7.04% in the week ending January 16, 2025. (2) The yield on the 10-year US Treasury bond, which is closely related to mortgage rates, closed at about 4.96% on Thursday, the highest closing level since April 2007; the yield closed at 3.96% on the last trading day of February (the day before the start of the war with Iran). The yield on the 30-year US Treasury bond closed above 5.36% on Thursday, the highest closing level since April 2002. Persistent inflation, economic uncertainty stemming from conflict, and the ever-increasing U.S. national debt have collectively driven bond yields soaring. (3) Amid rising mortgage rates, the National Association of Realtors reported that existing home sales fell to their lowest level in over a year in August, while existing home sales declined 2% month-over-month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.98 million units, and unsold inventory increased 3.2% from July. Earlier this year, Congress passed a bipartisan bill aimed at increasing housing supply, which became law in July, but President Trump refused to sign it in protest against the Senate's failure to pass his voter identification bill. In addition, the 15-year mortgage rate rose to 6.09% this week, up from 6.04% last week, and below 5.5% in the first week of March; homeowners planning to refinance typically opt for 15-year mortgages due to their higher monthly payments.