U.S. Treasury yields were little changed on Friday as investors looked to economic data and comments from Federal Reserve officials to assess the outlook for inflation and monetary policy.
At 4:39 a.m. ET, the 10-year Treasury yield was trading at 3.6883% after rising by less than one basis point. The yield on the 2-year Treasury was last down by less than one basis points to 4.5043%.
Yields and prices move in opposite directions. One basis point equals 0.01%.
Investors assessed the outlook for the U.S. economy, especially regarding whether inflation is easing, and what that could mean for monetary policy.
The preliminary Michigan consumer sentiment report for February is due Friday and will provide insights into how the consumers expect the economy to develop and how they are being affected.
Also on Friday, Fed Governor Christopher Waller and Philadelphia Fed President Patrick Harker are expected to make remarks, which investors will be scanning for hints about future monetary policy.
In comments made throughout the week, central bank officials have indicated that their battle with inflation is not yet over and that there could be further interest rate hikes, depending on economic data.
Many investors are, however, concerned that the pace of rate hikes and keeping them higher for longer will lead to a recession.
On Thursday, the weekly jobless claims reading came in at 196,000, an increase of 13,000 from the previous week. Many investors saw this as a sign that the job market could be easing, which has been one of the Fed’s policy aims as it has worked to cool the economy.
