Mortgage rates ended the week at the highest levels in roughly 2 months as investors moved to the sidelines ahead of next week’s Fed announcement.

In other words, investors sold bonds (among other things) and in the bond market, selling pressure means lower prices and higher rates, all other things being equal.

Despite the poor finish, things started out well enough.  The Consumer Price Index (CPI), a key inflation report, came out lower than expected on Tuesday.  With inflation being an important consideration for the bond market at the moment, the reaction was obvious.  Unfortunately, it was also short-lived.