NEW YORK: US Treasury yields were little changed on Wednesday as safe-haven demand tied to international political worries offset investor selling ahead of a 30-year bond auction.
Investor anxiety about possible US military showdowns against Syria and North Korea remained at elevated levels as they piled into Treasuries, sending the 30-year yield to hover above a near three-month low.
"The geopolitical tension has not escalated, but it's not going away either," said Mary Anne Hurley, vice president of fixed income at D.A. Davidson in Seattle.
US President Donald Trump signaled he was open to more strikes against Syria after he ordered a missile attack on a Syrian air base in response to an alleged Syrian military assault using poisonous gas that killed scores of civilian.
North Korea warned of a nuclear attack on the United States for any sign of aggression as a US Navy strike group was moving toward the Korean peninsula.
Adding to investor worries was a tightening French presidential race on April 23. Opinion polls stirred concern that hard-left candidate Jean-Luc Melenchon and far-right leader Marine Le Pen could end up in a runoff next month.
US benchmark 10-year Treasury yields were little changed at 2.300 percent, which analysts assessed as a critical resistance level.
The 30-year bond yield was flat at 2.933 percent after falling to 2.915 percent earlier Wednesday, which was the lowest since Jan. 17.
Following Tuesday's rally, it was unclear how aggressively investors will bid for the upcoming $12 billion auction of 30-year bonds at 1 p.m. EDT (1700 GMT), the final leg of this week's $56 billion coupon-bearing Treasury sale, traders said.
"With (the) 30-year yield below 3 percent, there's not a lot of desire to push it too far lower from here," Hurley said.
In "when-issued" activity, traders expected the US Treasury Department to pay a yield of 2.939 percent on the 30-year supply. This compared with a 3.170 percent yield at the prior 30-year bond sale in March.
The US bond market will shut early at 2 p.m. EDT (1800 GMT) on Thursday ahead of the market holiday on Good Friday.
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