TREASURIES-Bond market bets on inflation after Fed, CPI input
By Emily Flitter
NEW YORK, Oct 15 (Reuters) - Prices of longer-dated U.S. Treasury
securities fell and yields rose on Friday after weak consumer price data and a
speech by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke led traders to bet the U.S.
central bank would try to create inflation.
That made holding 30-year Treasury bonds, and even 10-year notes, at
current low yields less attractive, since future inflation would drive interest
rates higher and erode their value.
"Bernanke essentially is validating market expectations for large-scale
asset purchases," said John Briggs, interest-rate strategist at RBS Securities
in Stamford, Connecticut.
"That means the Fed might be more aggressively inflationary, which is
bad for 30-year bonds."
Traders sold long bonds and 10-year notes after Bernanke's speech,
delivered to a conference in Boston, conveyed a focus on inflation targets. For
more, click on
Data on Friday on U.S. consumer prices showed a smaller-than-expected
rise in September.
"Ironically today we got very benign inflation data with the core CPI
unchanged," said Rich Bryant, head of Treasury trading at MF Global in New
York.
"Normally this would bode well for the long end, but I think it's
actually contributing to weakness ... because the Fed is very focused on
inflation."
Fed action on inflation will most likely entail a new Treasury purchase
program, something bond traders have been anticipating for weeks.
"If you look at it, he didn't try to dial back the market's
expectations," said Scott Sherman, interest-rate strategist at Credit Suisse in
New York. "I think that Bernanke's statement is really consistent with how I
would expect him to approach this if he was leaning toward doing further
easing."
The 30-year bond traded 27/32 lower in price to yield 3.97 percent, up
from 3.92 percent late on Thursday. It earlier had its biggest two-day jump in
yield since May 10.
The 30-year yield also broke above its 100-day moving average and
briefly touched 4.00 percent for the first time since Aug 11.
"We did see some support at 4 percent, but it's hard to find a lot of
support for the long end," Briggs said.
Trading in Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities also supported the
idea that the sell-off was based on inflation expectations.
The spread between the yields on U.S. 10-year TIPS and regular 10-year
Treasury notes reached 2.14 percent, its widest in nearly 5 months. On Aug 24,
the spread, which is a market gauge of inflation expectations, was 1.50
percent.
"It's almost like the same trade If you look at the dollar index,
tens-bonds curve, and 10-year TIPS-breakevens, they're all moving exactly in
tandem," Briggs said.
Benchmark 10-year Treasury notes last traded 11/32 lower in price to
yield 2.55 percent, up from 2.51 percent late on Thursday.
Treasury notes with shorter maturities rose slightly in price.
Three-year notes traded 3/32 higher in price to yield 0.59 percent, down from
0.62 percent late on Thursday.
Prices rebounded from session lows after the October final reading from
the Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan consumer sentiment index came in
below analysts' expectations. Consumer sentiment registered at 67.9. Economists
polled by Reuters had expected the index to come in at 69.0.
(Additional reporting by Richard Leong and Chris Reese, Editing by)
Keywords: MARKETS BONDS
(emily.flitter@thomsonreuters.com; +1-646-223-6310; Reuters messaging;
emily.flitter.reuters.com@reuters.net)
2010-10-15 15:59:11
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