Freddie Mac Earns $5 Billion in Second Quarter

Freddie Mac earned $5 billion from April through March, the seventh straight profitable quarter for the mortgage giant.

The second-quarter gain compares with net income of $3 billion in the same period of 2012. Freddie says the gain was due largely to increased profits from investments made to hedge against rising interest rates. That helped offset losses on mortgages during the quarter.

Freddie will pay a dividend of $4.4 billion to the U.S. Treasury next month and is requesting no addition aid.

The government rescued Freddie and larger sibling Fannie Mae during the financial crisis in 2008. Together, they received loans of about $187 billion.

A housing recovery that began last year has made both profitable again. They have paid back roughly $136 billion of their government loans.

[Associated Press]