U.S. Treasury yields recorded their biggest one-day decline since early November Thursday, reflecting renewed demand for government debt after sustained sales in the first quarter.
According to Tradeweb, the yield on the US Treasury’s 10-year benchmark note stood at 1.531%, compared to 1.637% on Wednesday.
Yields, which fall as bond prices rise, fell overnight before falling sharply near the start of trading in the United States, and continued to slide for much of the session. This came despite a strong retail sales report that could normally be expected to increase returns as they tend to increase as the economic outlook improves.
Debt investors, however, have rejected good economic data in recent days, as much as they have ignored some weak data over the winter. In contrast, higher yields have attracted buyers, apparently aided by technical factors such as renewed demand from Japanese investors.
According to investors and analysts, Japan’s banks and insurers had contributed to a surge in global sales in February, driven by efforts to finalize the returns on their investment for the year ended March 31. There is now evidence that they are buying again, with new government data showing that Japanese investors bought on the net the equivalent of $ 15.6 billion in overseas bonds, most since November.