Mortgage Applications Drop for Second Week

New applications for U.S. home loans fell last week for the second week in a row even though 30-year mortgage interest rates decreased slightly, an industry group said.

The Mortgage Bankers Assn. said its seasonally adjusted market index, a measure of mortgage activity, eased for the week ended Friday, falling 0.6% to 642.7 from the previous week’s 646.3.

The Washington trade group’s purchase index, a gauge of new loan requests for home purchases, also eased last week, falling 0.1% to 443.1 from 443.7 a week earlier.