U.S. Treasury yields fell on Wednesday, with the yield on the 10-year Treasury coming down from the fresh 15-year high it hit on Tuesday.
At 4:24 a.m. ET, the 10-year Treasury yield was trading over five basis points lower at 4.5072%. It had risen as high as 4.566% on Tuesday, its highest level since Oct. 18, 2007. The 2-year Treasury yield was last down by more than two basis points to 5.0498%.
Yields and prices have an inverted relationship and one basis point equals 0.01%.
Investors considered the state of the economy as various key data points missed forecasts on Tuesday.
New home sales came in at 675,000 for August, fewer than the previously anticipated 695,000, which also marked a significant drop from July’s figures.
Also on Tuesday, the Conference Board’s consumer confidence index reflected a decline to 103 for September, below the 105.5 that economists polled by Dow Jones previously expected and down from August’s 108.7 figure. A higher reading suggests greater optimism from consumers about their own financial prospects and the state of the economy.
That comes as the Federal Reserve suggested last week that interest rates would go higher still and remain elevated for longer, prompting concerns among investors about what it could mean for the economy.
Elsewhere, concerns continued over a potential U.S. government shutdown, which could begin as early as Oct. 1 unless Congress agrees on a deal to fund the federal government before then.
A shutdown could negatively affect the U.S.’ credit rating, Moody’s rating agency warned earlier this week, while Wells Fargo noted that it could lead the U.S. dollar index to decline. President Biden on Tuesday called on Congress to resolve the issue.
August’s durable goods order figures are expected Wednesday, with economist surveyed by Dow Jones expecting a 0.5% decline.
