U.S. Treasury yields fell on Friday as investors awaited key jobs data that could influence future interest rate decisions by the Federal Reserve.
At 5:48 a.m. ET, the 10-year Treasury was trading at 3.859% after falling 6 basis points. The yield on the 2-year government bond fell by over 6 basis points to 4.843%.
Yields and prices move in opposite directions, and one basis point equals 0.01%.
Treasurys
| TICKER | COMPANY | YIELD | CHANGE | %CHANGE |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US1M | US 1 month treasury | 4.727% | +0.003 | 0.00% |
| US3M | US 3-month Treasury | 5.01% | unch | unch |
| US6M | US 6-Month Treasury | 5.25% | -0.034 | 0.00% |
| US1Y | US 1-year Treasury | 5.145% | -0.037 | 0.00% |
| US2Y | US 2-year Treasury | 4.843% | -0.057 | 0.00% |
| US10Y | US 10 year Treasury | 3.859% | -0.064 | 0.00% |
| US30Y | US 30 years Treasury | 3.825% | -0.045 | 0.00% |
More key jobs data points are expected on Friday. These include February’s nonfarm payrolls report, which tracks how many jobs the economy has created or lost. According to a Dow Jones survey, economists expect 225,000 jobs to have been added during the month.
February’s unemployment rate is also expected to be released, with economists polled expecting no change to January’s level of 3.4%.
Since a tight labor market is often associated with high inflation levels, investors will look to the data for clues about the state of the US economy.
The Fed has raised interest rates in an attempt to cool the economy, including the labor market, and ease inflation. The fresh figures could therefore also provide clues about the effect of the central bank’s monetary policy.
It comes as investors consider the Fed’s next interest rate policy move. Many expect the central bank to pick up the pace of rate hikes again, announcing a 50 basis point hike at its next meeting later this month.
Addressing Congress earlier this week, Fed Chairman Jerome Powell indicated that such decisions would be data dependent.