The Federal National Mortgage Assn. posted a...

The Federal National Mortgage Assn. posted a 32% jump in third-quarter earnings to $66.4 million. Fannie Mae, the nation’s largest investor in American home mortgages, credited the improvement to a decreased cost of debt from replacing maturing debt at more favorable rates, fewer liquidations of high-yielding mortgages, continued growth in income from guaranty fees resulting from an increase in outstanding mortgage-backed securities and a decreased tax rate from investments in tax-advantaged assets.