The volume of mortgage applications in the US softened by 1.4% from the previous week in the second week of August, slightly trimming the combined 14% jump in demand from the prior two periods, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association. The small decrease was consistent with the 1bps edge-up in the benchmark 30-year mortgage rate, although long-dated Treasury securities rose to a greater extent in the period amid poor auctions and a hot PPI print. Mortgage applications for a loan to purchase a home were broadly unchanged from the previous week. In the meantime, applications for a contract to refinance an existing mortgage, which are more sensitive to short-term changes in interest rates, fell by 3.1%.