NEW YORK: US Treasury yields fell on Monday, with benchmark yields posting one-month lows as doubts about the durability of the US economic expansion supported views the Federal Reserve may slow the pace of interest rate hikes.
A 1.7 percent drop in factory orders in February rekindled worries about weakness in the manufacturing sector, while a Fed barometer on the labor market showed further deterioration in March in contrast with the continued strength seen in Friday's March payrolls report.
The Fed said on Monday its labor market condition index was -2.1 in March, the weakest since June 2009.
In addition to the decline in orders for US factory goods, business spending on capital goods was much weaker than initially thought, the Commerce Department said.
Monday's dour economic news came as a top Fed policymaker said traders may be underestimating the pace of future rate hikes.
After the data, Boston Fed President Eric Rosengren said in prepared remarks that it was "surprising" that futures markets currently imply one or zero rate hikes this year from the central bank, saying that prediction could prove "too pessimistic."
Rosengren is a voting member of this year's Federal Open Market Committee, which sets US overnight interest rates.
Fed futures rates showed traders have priced out almost any chance the US central bank would raise rates at its April 27-28 policy meeting.
They also saw diminishing chances of a hike at any of the Fed's upcoming meetings this year.
Benchmark US 10-year Treasury yields fell 2.4 basis points to 1.767 percent.
They hit 1.753 percent earlier on Monday, the lowest since March 1, according to Reuters data.
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