Mortgage applications continued their downward decline for the week ended April 8. The volume of applications filed fell 6.7% this past week as refinancing activity continued to decline, the Mortgage Bankers Association said Wednesday. On an unadjusted basis, the market composite index fell 6.3% when compared to the previous week. The four-week moving average for the seasonally adjusted market index fell 3.3%. The refinance index during the period fell 7.7%, while the seasonally adjusted purchase index fell 4.7% after experiencing a 6.7% jump a week earlier. Refinancing activity during the period decreased to 60.3% of total applications, down from 61.2%. Meanwhile, the average interest rate for a 30-year, fixed mortgage increased for the fourth-consecutive week to 4.98 % from 4.93% a week earlier. In addition, the average rate for a 15-year, fixed-rate mortgage increased to 4.17% from 4.14%. Write to Kerri Panchuk.