Yields on long-term Treasuries have resumed their upward trend despite interventions by the U.S. Treasury Department

Yields on long-term U.S. Treasury bonds resumed their upward trend during trading on August 20 and nearly recouped the losses incurred the previous day. On that day, the U.S. Treasury Department pleased the market with its decision to double the maximum volume of buyback operations for government debt with maturities ranging from 10 to 30 years—from $2 billion to “at least” $4 billion. But investors viewed this as only a temporary reprieve.

The yield on 30-year Treasuries rose 7 basis points on Thursday, reaching 5.26%, following a 9-basis-point decline on Wednesday, according to the Financial Times. For 10-year bonds, the yield reached 4.71%—just slightly below the high since the beginning of 2025, notes Bloomberg. In the UK, the yield on 30-year bonds rose by 4 basis points to 5.82%.

Thursday’s market movements reflect investors’ deep concerns about the growing U.S. national debt and the government’s ability to contain the surge in inflation triggered by President Donald Trump’s war with Iran, the FT reports. Wall Street analysts, who were surprised by the U.S. Treasury’s move on Wednesday, said nonetheless that this was not enough to calm the market, the newspaper noted.

“The danger following this statement [by the U.S. Treasury] is that… it appears counterproductive and leads to a decline in appetite for U.S. assets or the dollar—or both,” MUFG analysts said in a report cited by the FT. The market “doesn’t fully buy the story that [U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott] Bessent will actually be able to keep long-term bond yields in check,” Bloomberg quotes TD Securities strategist Howard Du as saying.

This article was AI-translated and verified by a human editor