MBS Fell in 1Q, but HEL Deals Rose

Although the volume of new home equity securitizations increased in the first quarter, the bulk of the mortgage-related securities market saw a decline in issuance, The Bond Market Association has reported.New-issue activity in the home equity sector increased to $88.9 billion, up 74.3% from that of a year earlier and up 56.4% from that of the fourth quarter of 2003. New issuance of other types of mortgage securities dropped to $404.4 billion between January and March of this year from $776.1 billion in the first quarter of 2003 and $552.2 billion in the fourth quarter, the association said. The trade group can be found on the Web at http://www.bondmarkets.com.