Treasury Rate Movements, March 2018

Apr 4, 2018
US treasury rates by maturity

Short-term rates rose from the previous month, while long-term rates fell and medium-term rates were mixed.  The yield curve narrowed from the previous month and broke its two month widening streak.  Although the one-month bill rose the most, it maintained the lowest rate throughout the month.  However, the yield curve has been narrowing from the short-term end for quite a while now and an inversion brought upon by rising short-term rates is a strong indicator for an upcoming recession.  No inversion has occurred yet since this rise in short-term rates kicked off in late 2016.

Findings

  • All rates from the one-month to the two-year rose in March.
  • All rates from the three-year to the 30-year fell in March.
  • The one-month rate saw the largest absolute growth at 0.13 points.
  • The 20-year rate saw the largest drop at 0.17 points.
  • On a relative basis, the one-month rate grew the most with a 8.67 percent rise.
  • The 20-year rate fell the most on relative terms with a 5.63 percent drop.
  • The one-month bill maintained the lowest rate throughout the month.
  • The yield curve narrowed 0.29 points.

Caveats

  • As always, past performance is not indicative of future results.
  • The rates have been at historic lows for quite some time which has not occurred previously.

Details

range of US treasury rates

The breadth of the yield curve narrowed over the month from a range of 1.63 to a range of 1.34.  The widest range was 1.64 on March 2 and the narrowest 1.34 which was hit three times on March 14, 27, and 29.

high rate and maturity

The thirty-year bond held the highest rate throughout the month.  It has been dropping steadily however, throughout the month dropping below 3 percent on the final session of the month.

low rate and maturity

The one-month note held the lowest rate for every session of the month.  For the fifth month in a row though, it has hit a new 12-month high only to drop after peaking at 1.76.

Sources

"Treasury Constant Maturity," Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, accessed April 2, 2018, https://fred.stlouisfed.org/categories/115.

Filed under: Economic Data