By Ben Eisen, MarketWatch
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- U.S. Treasury prices climbed Thursday
as investors placed bets that an economic symposium in Jackson Hole
would reaffirm a dovish U.S. monetary policy outlook, putting
benchmark yields on track to snap a three-day rise.
The 10-year note (10_YEAR) yield, which falls as prices rise,
was down 2 basis points on the day at 2.407%. Since hitting a
14-month low last Friday, the yield has moved higher for three
consecutive sessions.
The Jackson Hole conference, which brings together a number of
prominent central bankers, will include a speech from Fed
Chairwoman Janet Yellen on Friday. Investors expect Yellen to hold
tight to the central bank's low-rate message, but they will
nonetheless watch for any changes in tone. A number of other Fed
officials are slated to speak in the coming days.
"Jackson Hole is what everyone is waiting for, but at the same
time the market isn't expecting any major change in policy
direction to come out of Jackson Hole," said Don Ellenberger,
senior portfolio manager at Federated Investors. "The big surprise
would be if Janet Yellen says anything even remotely hawkish."
Market movers
Here's what investors are keeping an eye on during the trading
session.
The 30-year bond (30_YEAR) yield fell 2.5 basis points to
3.195%, while the 5-year note (5_YEAR) yield was down a basis point
at 1.620%.
TIPS auction
The Treasury Department sold $16 billion in inflation-protected
securities, or TIPS, which guard against rising consumer cost
pressures by increasing in principle alongside inflation. Here are
the details of the auction:
Nobel laureate Robert Shiller used low TIPS yields as an example
of just how expensive bonds are during a Tuesday television
interview.
Subscribe to WSJ: http://online.wsj.com?mod=djnwires