10-year Treasury yield dips as traders weigh state of U.S. economy

U.S. Treasury yields were lower Friday as investors continued to assess the state of the U.S. economy after labor data buoyed sentiment.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury was around 5 basis points lower at 3.946% at 2:23 p.m. ET. Nonetheless, it was holding near the level it was at last week before a weak U.S. jobs report helped trigger a run of global market volatility.

The yield on the 2-year note was up 1 basis point on the day at 4.059%.

Yields and prices move in opposite directions, and one basis point equals one one-hundredth (0.01%) of a percent.

Initial claims for unemployment insurance totaled 233,000 in the latest week, the Labor Department reported Thursday, a lower figure than expected.

That helped drive the S&P 500 index to its best day since 2022, also boosting Asia-Pacific and European markets on Friday.

Traders meanwhile trimmed bets on a 50 basis-point rate cut from the Federal Reserve in September, now pricing in roughly even odds of that or a 25 basis-point move lower, according to CME’s FedWatch Tool.

Fresh economic data is in short supply until Tuesday, when the producer price index reading for July is due.