More strong demand expected for US debt at auction

Stable US Treasury yields on Thursday set the stage for upcoming bond auction results to show continued high demand for the safe-haven government debt despite the spreading COVID-19 pandemic.

The Treasury department will give details in the early afternoon on the sale of $19 billion worth of 30-year bonds .

In two previous auctions this week the US sold debt at record low yields, as issuance soars to fund economic stimulus in response to the coronavirus.

"There's tremendous interest in adding high-quality duration right now," said Michael Lorizio, senior fixed income trader for Manulife Investment Management.

The benchmark 10-year yield was down a basis point in morning trading at 0.643%.

Wall Street opened higher after data pointed to a declining trend in weekly jobless claims, with investors also weighing the risk of another business shutdown as US COVID-19 cases soared.

The Labor Department's most timely data on the economy showed 1.31 million Americans filed for state unemployment benefits in the latest week, down from 1.43 million claims in the prior week. It also fared better than economists' estimates of 1.38 million claims.

A closely watched part of the US Treasury yield curve measuring the gap between yields on two- and 10-year Treasury notes, seen as an indicator of economic expectations, was at 49 basis points. That was about a basis point lower than Wednesday's close and in line with its level since mid-June.

The two-year US Treasury yield, which typically moves in step with interest rate expectations, was up less than a basis point at 0.1567% in morning trading.