$8 billion of Canada mortgage bonds were sold at 2.74% in the last Canada Housing Trust issuance.

That works out to a 0.60% premium above 5-year Canada bond yields. A year ago the premium demanded by investors was only 0.34%.

Lenders sold off $43.5 billion of mortgages to this program in 2008, versus $35.7-billion in 2007. (FP) In the words of one lender CEO, “If there was not a mortgage back bond as an exit, few lenders would be doing business today.”