U.S. bond yields were range-bound Friday, as the market steadies ahead of the August consumer price index inflation inflation data due next week.
What’s happening
-
The yield on the 2-year Treasury
BX:TMUBMUSD02Y
was 4.94%, down 0.9 basis points. -
The yield on the 10-year Treasury
BX:TMUBMUSD10Y
was 4.24%, down 0.4 basis points. -
The yield on the 30-year Treasury
BX:TMUBMUSD30Y
was 4.35%, up 0.5 basis points.
What’s driving markets
Several Federal Reserve officials spoke on Thursday, leaving little doubt that the Fed won’t raise interest rates again in September, even as differences emerged on whether the central bank will still have to take rates higher at its November meeting.
Dallas Fed President Lorie Logan said that if the Fed skips a rate hike at its meeting in two weeks, it doesn’t imply they will stop hiking for good.
New York Fed President John Williams on Thursday sounded content with the current level of interest rates, but said he will be watching data closely to make sure the level of rates is high enough to keep inflation moving down.
Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee on Thursday suggested the Fed is almost done raising interest rates to quell inflation.
In U.S. economic data, Thursday saw a surprise decline in weekly jobless benefit claims, just a day after the release of a surprisingly resilient services sector activity index. However, the Wall Street Journal reported Walmart is paying new workers slightly less than it did as recently as three months ago, a sign that the labor market is cooling off.
There aren’t any major economic or corporate releases set for Friday, with the highlight being a speech from San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly at 11 a.m. Eastern. The crucial consumer price index for August will be released on Wednesday.
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