Long-term U.S. Treasury yields moved lower on Friday as market participants sorted through a busy week of economic data.
The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note dipped 5 basis points to 2.84%. The yield on the 30-year Treasury bond also ticked about 5 basis points lower to 3.108%. Yields move inversely to prices, and a basis point is equal to 0.01%.
The shorter-term 2-year Treasury yield rose slightly to basis points to 3.25% after slipping in the previous session.
Friday brought more positive news on inflation. Import were down 1.4% in July. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones expected a decrease of 1%. Export prices also fell more than expected.
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The preliminary August reading for the University of Michigan consumer sentiment index came in higher than expected, and the report also showed one-year inflation expectations fall slightly. However, three-year inflation expectations ticked up.
Earlier in the wee, the producer price index fell 0.5% from June, the first month-over-month decrease since April 2020, the month after Covid-19 was declared a pandemic. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones had been expecting an increase of 0.2%.
The PPI marked a second report this week pointing to easing price pressures. Data on Wednesday showed that U.S. consumer prices rose 8.5% year over year in July, slowing from the previous month in large part due to a drop in oil prices. Economists had expected an 8.7% annual climb.
Money Report
The data reflected an easing of inflation and prompted investors to question the prospects of the Federal Reserve slowing the pace of rate hikes as soon as September.
