BANKING

Mortgage Rates Drop: Fixed-rate mortgages averaged 9.17% last week, the lowest rate in more than four years, according to the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. The rate, down from 9.19% the week before, was the lowest since fixed-rate mortgages averaged 9.07% during the week ending March 27, 1987. On one-year adjustable-rate mortgages, lenders were asking an average initial rate of 7.03%, down from 7.05% last week and the lowest since Freddie Mac began tracking ARMs in 1984. The rates do not include add-on fees known as points.