U.S. Treasury yields fell Friday as recession fears and disappointing economic data left investors looking for safety.
The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note traded lower by 8 basis points at 2.889%, near its lowest level since late May. Meanwhile, the yield on the 30-year Treasury bond slid less than 1 basis point to 3.116%.
The 2-year Treasury rate, which is typically more sensitive to U.S. monetary policy changes, was down 8 basis points at 2.839%. Yields move inversely to prices.
Yields extended losses after the ISM manufacturing index came in at 53, slightly below a Dow Jones estimate of 54.3.
That data set came in a day after the government reported that the core personal consumption expenditures price index, the Fed’s preferred inflation measure, rose 4.7% in May. That’s 0.2 percentage points less than the month before, but still around levels last seen in the 1980s. The index was expected to show a year-over-year increase of 4.8% for May, according to Dow Jones.
Stubbornly high inflation levels and the Federal Reserve’s efforts to tackle a surge in prices have resulted in escalating recession worries. They also led to a dismal performance for stocks in the first half of the year.
The S&P 500 on Thursday closed out its worst first half in decades. The broader market index dropped 20.6% for its largest first-half decline since 1970.
— CNBC’s Fred Imbert contributed to this report.
