JGBs tick up, BOJ operations underscore tight supply conditions

TOKYO: Japanese government bond prices edged up a tad on Monday as the Bank of Japan's bond-buying operation underscored limited selling interest ahead of the year-end.

The 10-year JGB yield dipped 0.5 basis point to 0.040 percent while the 20-year JGB yield also slipped 0.5 basis point to 0.560 percent.

The 30-year JGB yield was flat at 0.815 percent.

The BOJ on Monday maintained the size of its buying in JGBs with five to 10 years, 10 to 25 years, and more than 25 years to maturity.

In all of the three operations, the average yield at which the BOJ bought was lower than the previous close, reflecting limited supply compared with demand.

The price of the benchmark 10-year JGB futures ticked up 0.09 point to 150.87, paring most of their losses to a seven-week low of 150.53 last week.

Their trading volume was paltry, at 9,626 contracts, the lowest in more than four months with many market players away for year-end holidays.