US Treasuries edge ahead as Fed meeting looms
Mon Sep 20, 2004 09:39 AM ET
NEW YORK, Sept 20 (Reuters) - U.S. Treasury debt prices ground higher on Monday as investors trimmed short positions on speculation that while the Federal Reserve will raise rates at its policy meeting this week, it could also set a dovish future tack.
The 10-year Treasury note (US10YT=RR: Quote, Profile, Research) added 4/32 in price, lowering yields to 4.095 percent from 4.11 percent late on Friday. Chart barriers are seen at 4.135 percent and 4.20 percent on the topside, and 4.05 percent and 4.00 percent underneath.
Fed officials have made it clear that current interest rates of 1.50 percent are unusually, and unnecessarily, low and need to be raised. Taking the hint, the market has priced in a 25 basis point move on Tuesday to 1.75 percent.
"The outcome is completely discounted," said Chris Rupkey, senior financial economist at BTM. The market also puts a 100 percent chance of a further move to 2.00 percent by year-end, but there is much is uncertainty whether it will come at the November or December meeting.
Investors are hoping the Fed will make its intentions a little clearer in its post-meeting statement, though the central bank dislikes locking itself into any one path.
Bond bulls are betting the Fed will soften its policy line by acknowledging the recent moderation of inflationary pressures and the still-patchy performance of the economy.
Others, however, thought the data has been strong enough for the Fed to stick to its optimistic line.
"The Fed's press release could be written a little more bullishly for the economy than last time," said Rupkey, perhaps using some version of Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan's assertion earlier this month that the economy had regained traction.
Such a formula would likely trigger a wave of profit-taking in bonds given the recent run-up in prices. With so much riding on the Fed's words, Treasury trading was understandably tense.
Yields on two-year notes (US2YT=RR: Quote, Profile, Research) hovered around 2.48 percent while those on the five-year note (US5YT=RR: Quote, Profile, Research) edged down to 3.31 percent from 3.33 percent late Friday.
The 30-year bond (US30YT=RR: Quote, Profile, Research) added 8/32 in price, lowering its yield to 4.89 percent from 4.91 percent.
The yield curve extended its recent flattening trend, with the gap between two and 10-year yields narrowing to 162 basis points -- the smallest spread since Sept. 2001.
The decline in longer-term yields has owed much to speculation the Fed will soon pause in its tightening campaign. At least one U.S. bank last week told clients the Fed intended to reach 2.0 percent and then go on indefinite hold, a long way short of traditional estimates of neutral policy which encompass a broad range of 3.5 percent to 5.5 percent.
"The argument is making the rounds that the Fed may well stop at 1.75 percent or 2.00 percent, heralding a new era of super-low "neutral" Fed funds rates," analysts at Lehman Brothers noted in their weekly outlook, adding they disagree.
If this was true, then long-term yields could fall yet further given the gap between 10-year yields and the 3-month T-bill has averaged about 150 basis points since the beginning of 1960, implying a 3.50 percent yield should 2.00 percent come to be viewed as the steady-state level of fed funds.
"The flaw with this line of reasoning is that dramatic revisions to longer-term Fed fund expectations do not occur in a month," argued Lehman's analysts.
They noted Fed fund futures and Eurodollars were still pricing in rates of 3.0 percent by the end of next year.
"Instead, the flattening rally appears to have been driven by either further short covering or the general decline in risk premium best reflected in the tightening spreads in lower-credit quality sectors and, particularly, emerging markets," said Lehman.