US yields advance on strong US job gains

05 Jul, 2019

Analysts said the strong jobs report should not stop the Fed from reducing interest rates in July. What it did though was take the 50 basis-point cut off the table.

US benchmark 10-year yields rose to a more than one-week high, while 2-year yields climbed to a two-week peak after the jobs report.

Data showed US nonfarm payrolls increased by 224,000 jobs last month as government employment rose by the most in 10 months. The economy created only 72,000 jobs in May. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast payrolls rising 160,000 in June.

But wage gain growth slowed in June, rising just 0.2pc, after gaining 0.3pc in May.

"Ultimately, should the Fed deliver in July, it will be postured as an 'insurance' cut, coupled with an emphasis on risk to sustained lower inflation expectation," said Gregory Faranello, head of US rates at AmeriVet Securities.

"The notion of a 50 basis-point cut should be pared back, perhaps not entirely. We expect the market to remain largely priced for a 25 basis-point cut in July."

In morning trading, US 10-year note yields rose to 2.06pc, a one-week peak, from 1.955pc late on Wednesday. They were last at 2.054pc. Ten-year yields hit 1.939pc on Wednesday, which was their lowest level since November 2016.

Yields on US 30-year bonds advanced to 2.557pc, from 2.471pc on Wednesday.

At the short end of the curve, US 2-year yields were up at 1.873pc, from Wednesday's 1.766pc. Earlier in the session, two-year yields touched two-week highs.

After the data, US rate futures have priced in just a 9.0pc chance the US central bank will lower interest rate by half a percentage point, down from 29pc on Wednesday, according to CME Group's FedWatch program.

Copyright Reuters, 2019

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