Applications for U.S. home mortgages rose last week, driven by improved refinance demand as interest rates tumbled, an industry group said on Wednesday.
The Mortgage Bankers Association said its seasonally adjusted index of mortgage application activity, which includes both refinancing and home purchase demand, rose 4.5 percent in the week ended April 5.
The seasonally adjusted index of refinancing applications gained 6.3 percent. But the gauge of loan requests for home purchases, a leading indicator of home sales, slipped 1.3 percent.
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