Mortgage rates rose again this week and reached the highest level in nearly a year, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said on Thursday.

Freddie Mac’s latest Primary Mortgage Market Survey showed the average interest rate on the benchmark 30-year fixed mortgage rose to 6.58% this week, up from 6.55% last week.

This week’s reading is the highest in about 11 months, as the 30-year fixed mortgage rate was last at 6.58% on Aug. 21, 2025. At this time a year ago, the rate was 6.74%.

HOUSING AFFORDABILITY TO IMPROVE AS HOME PRICE GROWTH COOLS, REALTOR.COM FORECASTS

An “Open House” sign in front of a home for sale in the Woodland Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles, California on July 13, 2025.  (Eric Thayer/Bloomberg/Getty Images / Getty Images)

“The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.58% this week,” said Freddie Mac chief economist Sam Khater.

“As market conditions continue to evolve, borrowers should remember that shopping around for a mortgage rate can make a meaningful difference, potentially saving them thousands over the loan’s lifetime,” Khater added.

The average rate on a 15-year fixed mortgage also moved higher to 5.96%, up from 5.93% last week. A year ago, the 15-year fixed mortgage had an average rate of 5.87%.

STARTER HOME AFFORDABILITY IS CRAWLING BACK. THESE REGIONS ARE BEST FOR FIRST-TIME BUYERS

Mortgage rates are affected by several factors, including the Federal Reserve and geopolitics. Though mortgage rates are not directly affected by the Fed’s interest rate decisions, they closely track the 10-year Treasury yield. The 10-year yield rose slightly to 4.699% as of Thursday afternoon.

“While mortgage rates remain elevated, homebuyers may be better served focusing on the full cost of homeownership rather than trying to guess where rates will be a few months from now,” said Jeff DerGurahian, chief investment officer and head economist at LoanDepot.

“The tug-of-war between inflation and the renewed conflict between the U.S. and Iran is reflected in today’s rates, as higher oil prices raise concerns that elevated energy costs could filter into future inflation readings,” DerGurahian added.

RECORD DECLINE IN HOME ASKING PRICES OFFERS BUYERS AN AFFORDABILITY BOOST

A “New Listing” sign outside a home in Napa, California, US, on Monday, May 6, 2024. (David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)

The latest mortgage data comes as conditions in the housing market have improved somewhat for buyers, many of whom have been on the sidelines as tight inventory has supported higher home prices and mortgage rates have held relatively steady.

Realtor.com recently released a midyear update to its 2026 housing market forecast that estimates home price growth will slow to 1.2% this year, a rate that’s slower than the original forecast for the year and is below the current pace of inflation. That means home prices would be effectively declining in real, inflation-adjusted terms.

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More than 1.5 million dozen shell eggs sold in six states have been voluntarily recalled over potential salmonella contamination, federal regulators announced Wednesday. 

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said Midwest Poultry Services initiated the voluntary recall, affecting 1,589,577 dozen cartons of white shell eggs and brown cage-free shell eggs. 

Officials said the recalled products were sold under several brands, including Kroger, Brookshire’s, Country Morning, Simple Truth, and Sunups, as well as various bulk Grade A and Grade AA eggs. 

The eggs were ultimately distributed to retail and food service customers in Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico and Mississippi, as well as other smaller retail outlets, according to the FDA. 

ALLERGY MEDICATION RECALLED OVER POSSIBLE DRUG MIX-UP THAT COULD TRIGGER ‘LIFE-THREATENING’ REACTIONS

Country Morning Grade A Large 12-count eggs (top) and Brookshire’s Jumbo White Eggs 12-count (bottom) are among the recalled retail egg cartons. (U.S. Food and Drug Administration / Fox News)

The affected products were produced at two farms in Texas, according to the FDA.

Officials said the issue was discovered during routine environmental testing. No illnesses have been reported in connection with the eggs. 

“When we learned of a possible issue with egg safety, we began diverting eggs to a breaking plant where they would be pasteurized to kill any foodborne pathogens,” Midwest Poultry Services told FOX Business in a statement on Thursday. 

“We also began a robust internal investigation and initiated testing protocols to identify potential sources of SE,” the company added, referring to Salmonella Enteritidis. 

“Producing safe, quality food for those who eat our eggs is our highest priority, and this voluntary investigation and recall demonstrates that commitment.”

A 12-count carton of Kroger Grade A Medium eggs are subject to the Salmonella recall notice. (U.S. Food and Drug Administration / Fox News)

TARGET, KROGER, MEIJER FRUIT PURÉE POUCHES RECALLED OVER PLASTIC RISK: FDA

The recall includes various carton sizes and egg counts.

Consumers can identify affected products by the codes printed on the side of the carton. The eggs were packed and distributed between June 6 and July 3, with sell-by or best-by dates ranging from July 20 through Aug. 17.

The affected cartons also bear plant code P-1950 or 840962 with a Julian Date between 157 and 184.

Consumers who purchased the recalled eggs should not eat them and should return them to the place of purchase for a full refund.

According to the FDA, salmonella can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, older adults, frail individuals and people with weakened immune systems. 

Healthy people infected with salmonella may experience fever, diarrhea that may be bloody, nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain. 

In rare and severe cases, the bacteria can enter the bloodstream and cause more serious illnesses, including arterial infections, infected aneurysms, endocarditis and arthritis. 

A 2.5-dozen box of Cal-Maine Sunups Grade A Medium eggs is included in the Midwest Poultry Services recall. (U.S. Food and Drug Administration / Fox News)

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Consumers with questions can contact Midwest Poultry Services’ consumer helpline at 574-405-9531, available Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. EST, or email recallassistance@mpseggs.com.

The couple’s system of sharing money remained the same even when Max was made redundant last year and they had to rely on Hannah’s salary of between £40,000 and £60,000.

“There was shock and panic initially,” Hannah, who did not want to disclose her precise salary, says. “But we sat down and really looked through where we could cut things out.”

They cancelled gym memberships and Sky TV and went through their finances to make sure they could cover their mortgage and bills on a lower income.

Max had trained at culinary school instead of doing A-levels and university, but had moved away from hospitality because he felt it would not pay enough.

When he was made redundant he wanted to use the opportunity to create his own business in something he genuinely enjoyed – but Hannah had reservations.

“At first I told him to set this up alongside getting another job but we quickly realised the business would take a lot of time and energy,” she says.

“We ran the numbers and decided that this was the right moment to take the risk given we don’t have kids and no one else is depending on us.”

Max spent £20,000 from his redundancy package buying and converting a horsebox trailer into a pizza truck, which now caters for weddings, parties and pop-ups.

He says the money he invested was their agreed limit to make the business work and if it failed he would find another job rather than putting in more.

The business now brings in between £4,000 and £6,000 a month in revenue and Max pays himself a salary that covers the mortgage.

“It will be incredibly frustrating for borrowers to see rates rise back up to where they were a month ago. The positive progress over recent weeks now feels all but lost, but what the market needs is a period of stability,” said Rachel Springall, finance expert at Moneyfacts.

She said 100 deals had been pulled temporarily as lenders reconsider their pricing plans.

She suggested that anyone who needed to remortgage this year could lock in a new deal now with their existing lender ahead of time, but should also seek help from a broker to see whether there are better deals elsewhere.

“Brokers are an anchor during turbulent times as they can help borrowers keep abreast of changes and be there step by step when going through a mortgage application,” she said.

Borrowers had been heartened by the regular falls in mortgage rates during June and early July, but brokers say the latest changes are evidence of the uncertainty in the sector.

“Any borrower hoping for rate cuts to become an ongoing trend will need to rethink,” said David Hollingworth, of L&C Mortgages.

“Momentum has performed an about turn and now clearly shifted to fixed rates rising in the near term at least.”

Craig Brelsford

This is Craig Brelsford with RedChip Companies. Thank you for joining today’s event with Alliance Entertainment, which trades on the NASDAQ under the ticker AENT. With us today, we have Bruce Ogilvie, Executive Chairman of Alliance Entertainment; Jeff Walker, the CEO; and Amanda Gnecco, the CFO. We will begin with a brief presentation in a moment, and then we will answer your questions. [Operator Instructions].

Before we begin, please allow me to read the safe harbor statement. This call may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements pertaining to future financial and/or operating results, along with other statements about the future expectations, beliefs, goals, plans or prospects expressed by management constitute forward-looking statements. Any statements that are not historical facts should also be considered forward-looking statements. Of course, forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties. Alliance team, please go right ahead.

Bruce Ogilvie
Executive Chairman of the Board

Craig, thank you very much. Thank you, everybody, for joining us today and taking the time to learn about our company. Some of you may be new to us, I’ll give you, like, a little brief background where we are. I’m trying to explain everything, and then we’re going to have a Q&A session after about 22 minutes.

On my screen here, hopefully, you can see it. This is a picture of all the different types of products we carry, which consist of movies, music, video games, toys and collectibles. Music consists of LPs, CDs and yes, and cassettes. As far as movies go, it’s 4K Blue-ray