Mortgage REITs modestly green as QE nears end; rate hikes nearly in sight

• Another $10B taper this month brings QE to just $5B monthly, an amount the FOMC expects to go down to zero with its next policy meeting. The "dots" shifted somewhat higher - meaning maybe a slightly earlier start to Fed rate hikes and a higher level of Fed Funds at the end of the next few years, with the median forecast being 2.9% at the end of 2016.
• Mortgage REITs (REM +0.2%) have been under pressure in the sessions ahead of the FOMC, and are mostly snoozing through today's news.
• Annaly (NLY -0.1%), American Capital Agency (AGNC +0.1%), CYS Investments (CYS +0.2%), New York Mortgage Trust (NYMT +0.5%), Dynex (DX +0.8%), Ellington Residential (EARN +1.2%), Javelin (JMI +1.3%).
• Previously: FOMC statement and projections lean hawkish
• Previously: Yellen press conference: Falling UE rate still masking labor market weakness