Treasury bonds

As inflation fears put upward pressure on 10-year Treasury bonds and mortgage rates nationally, borrowers could start to take more notice of what lenders are charging them locally.

Financial firms have mostly shrugged off the government's budget woes, but Washington's gridlock might pose a bigger risk than they think.

Banks are swapping out long-term holdings for short-term securities to manage interest rate risk. But in the process, they are sacrificing yield — and ammo they might need to pay more for deposits to retain customers.