TOKYO: Japanese government bond prices were steady to slightly weaker on Tuesday with futures and medium-term notes off slightly on firmness in stocks and as investors held back from buying ahead of a 10-year bond auction later this week.
Ten-year JGB futures dipped 0.05 point to 142.38, though they looked solid on their Ichimoku chart. If they stay at their current level, they will move above a very thin Ichimoku cloud on Wednesday, with the cloud slipping to 142.33.
The five-year cash bond yield rose 0.5 basis point to 0.340 percent in tandem with the fall in futures prices, while the yield on the current 10-year cash bond was flat at 0.980 percent.
The 10-year yield has been stuck in a tight 0.98-0.99 percent range since the start of the year and is seen staying there ahead of Thursday's 2.2 trillion yen 10-year JGB auction.
But if the auction draws decent demand as expected, the yield could drop to around 0.95 percent, near a one-year low of 0.940 percent hit in November, said a trader at a European brokerage.
A Reuters online survey of major market players over the weekend showed participants are at their most cautious about the market since July, with the Reuters bull-bear index falling to minus 38 from its previous reading of minus 15 at the end of last year. It is the lowest since minus 39 in the second week of July.
Japan's Nikkei share average edged up 0.5 percent after US aluminium producer Alcoa reported better-than-expected revenue.
Comments
Comments are closed for this article.