America In Focus: money pressures climb as mortgage rate tops 7%, bond yields rise

The economy, inflation and how those forces could impact the lives of Americans were front and center over the past week. Trips to the grocery store and gas station are more painful than they were last year, and rising costs are impacting the decisions of both households and businesses.

Here’s a snapshot of prominent economic data and news that occurred over the past week and what it potentially means for you.

The average long-term U.S. mortgage rate rose this week above 7% for the first time since January 2025, the latest affordability setback for prospective homebuyers following a five-week run of rate increases.

The weekly average rate on a 30-year fixed-rate home loan rose to 7.03% from 6.95% last week, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday. One year ago, the average rate was 6.30%.

The average rate is now the highest it’s been since Jan. 16, 2025, when it was at 7.04%.

Higher mortgage rates can add hundreds of dollars a month to borrowers’ costs, limiting homebuyers’ purchasing power. As rates rise, that can also lead prospective home shoppers to delay buying.

The Energy Department said Thursday that it will spend almost $2 billion to try to squeeze more electricity out of the nation’s aging and stressed power grid, as President Donald Trump’s administration steps up efforts to avoid blackouts amid skyrocketing energy demand spurred by artificial intelligence .

The money will go toward 31 projects across 26 states that are expected to produce more than 23 gigawatts of additional electricity capacity — enough to power 16 million homes. The projects will use new technologies such as sensors to measure real-time weather conditions to ensure safe transmission or direct power away from congested paths, the department said.

The upgrades could improve power reliability and lower electricity costs for about 100 million Americans, officials said.

The announcement comes amid warnings that AI’s voracious demand for power is threatening to overwhelm U.S. power supplies , as massive new data centers come online faster than new power plants can be built. It also comes as electricity bills rise faster than inflation in many parts of the U.S., blamed in some areas on demand from data centers .

Nearly everyone will feel the impact of what’s going on in the bond market , no matter how far away and abstract it may seem.

Bond yields have jumped to their highest levels in roughly two decades, and that affects anyone who borrows money . That includes discouraged people trying to keep up with high inflation , as well as businesses wanting to build data centers for artificial-intelligence technology.

High yields even affect people who don’t borrow money. For savers, it means they can earn more in interest by putting cash into bonds or a high-yield savings account. It could also knock down the value of the stocks in their 401(k) accounts.

Fewer people applied for U.S. unemployment benefits last week, as U.S. jobless claims remain at historically low levels and most Americans enjoy job security.

The Labor Department said Thursday that 197,000 people applied for unemployment checks last week, the fewest since mid-July and down from a revised 198,000 the week before. The four-week average of claims, which smooths out week-to-week ups and downs, fell to 202,250 last week from 204,000.

Claims for jobless benefits are a proxy for layoffs, and economists watch them because they can be a sign of where the job market is headed. So far this year, claims have mostly stayed below 220,000 — historically low.

Cooling oil and a sell-off in the bond market left Wall Street mixed this week.

The S&P 500 was virtually unchanged, but only after flipping between earlier gains and losses. It eased off a three-day losing streak to end the week, marred by big swings caused by rising yields in the bond market. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up and the Nasdaq composite was lower.

The S&P 500 is near its all-time high set last month and on track to finish its first winning week in the last three.