Treasury yields end at one-week lows, with 10-year rate near 200-day moving average

By Vivien Lou Chen

Yields on U.S. government debt finished at their lowest levels in more than a week on Friday as analysts poured over a week of central-bank decisions.

What happened

The yield on the 2-year Treasury BX:TMUBMUSD02Y eased 3.2 basis points to 4.598%, from 4.630% on Thursday. For the week, the rate declined 12.3 basis points.The yield on the 10-year Treasury BX:TMUBMUSD10Y fell 5.3 basis points to 4.217%, from 4.270% on Thursday. The rate fell 8.6 basis points for the week.The yield on the 30-year Treasury BX:TMUBMUSD30Y dropped 4.9 basis points to 4.392%, from 4.441% on Thursday. For the week, the rate fell 3.5 basis points. Friday's levels are the lowest for the 2-, 10-, and 30-year rates since March 12-13, based on 3 p.m. Eastern time figures from Dow Jones Market Data.

What drove markets

Traders absorbed a flurry of central-bank moves this week - which included the Bank of Japan ending negative interest rates, the Swiss National Bank kicking off what's seen as a global rate-cutting cycle, and the U.S. Federal Reserve sticking to its outlook for three quarter-point reductions this year.

The 10-year yield ended near its 200-day moving average of 4.2%. The lack of any major U.S. data on Friday made it difficult for the market to shift away from the dovish narrative presented earlier this week by the Fed.

On Wednesday, policymakers indicated that it will probably still be appropriate to cut rates in three quarter-point increments this year, even though they nudged up their expectations for core inflation.

Next Friday brings the February reading of the Fed's preferred inflation gauge, known as the core PCE.

-Vivien Lou Chen

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03-22-24 1541ET

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