U.S. 30-year mortgage rates plunged last week by the most in two years, reaching their lowest level since May 2023 and sparking a surge in refinancing applications.

The contract rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage declined 27 basis points to 6.55% in the week ended Aug. 2, according to Mortgage Bankers Association data released Wednesday.

The rate on a five-year adjustable mortgage plummeted 31 basis points to 5.91%, the lowest this year.

An index of refinancing jumped nearly 16% last week to a two-year high of 661.4. Mortgage applications to buy a home increased 0.8%, the first advance in a month. The overall index of applications, which includes the two, climbed 6.9% last week to the highest level since the start of the year.

The decline in rates “should set the stage for a modest recovery in transactions in the rest of the year, providing that recession fears prove unfounded as we expect,” Thomas Ryan, North America economist at Capital Economics, said in a note. “We think this marks a turning point for the housing market, which has been frozen for a while now.”

CVS Health cuts its 2024 forecast

CVS Health chopped its 2024 forecast for a third time this year and changed the leadership of its health insurance business where it continues to struggle with rising costs.

CEO Karen Lynch will lead the insurance segment, replacing Executive Vice President Brian Kane, who is leaving the company about a year after arriving, the health care giant said Wednesday.

Overall, the company’s profit dropped more than 7% to $1.77 billion in the quarter. Adjusted earnings totaled $1.83 per share on $91.2 billion in revenue.

CVS Health now expects adjusted per-share earnings for the year to be between $6.40 and $6.65. That’s well below the Wall Street consensus of $6.96 per share.