WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - After showing a lack of direction early in the session, treasuries moved to the downside over the course of the trading day on Wednesday.
Bond prices came under pressure in early afternoon trading, ending the day firmly in negative territory. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, climbed 3.3 basis points to 4.163 percent.
The weakness among treasuries on the final trading day of 2025 may have reflected uncertainty about the outlook for interest rates going into the new year.
The minutes of the Federal Reserve's December meeting reiterated officials' divergent views but did provide much clarity about the further rate cuts.
The Fed is widely expected to leave rates unchanged at its next meeting in late January but is likely to cut rates by at least a quarter point in 2026.
Treasuries also moved lower following the release of a Labor Department report showing first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits unexpectedly dipped in the week ended December 27th.
The report said initial jobless claims fell to 199,000, a decrease of 16,000 from the previous week's revised level of 215,000.
Economists had expected jobless claims to rise to 220,000 from the 214,000 originally reported for the previous week.
Following the New Year's Day holiday on Thursday, activity may be somewhat subdued on the first trading day of 2026 on Friday amid a lack of major U.S. economic data.
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