Treasuries Close Modestly Higher Following Slew Of Economic Data

(RTTNews) - After moving notably higher over the course of the previous session, treasuries saw some further upside during trading on Wednesday.

Bond prices moved higher in early trading and remained in positive territory throughout the session. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, fell by 2.6 basis points to 2.234 percent.

The continued strength among treasuries came following the release of a slew of U.S. economic data, with the release of some reports pushed forward by the Thanksgiving Day holiday on Thursday.

The Labor Department released a report showing an unexpected increase in initial jobless claims in the week ended November 22nd.

A series of reports from the Commerce Department showed modest increases in personal income and spending and new home sales as well as an unexpected rebound in durable goods orders.

Traders were also presented with weaker than expected readings on consumer sentiment, pending home sales, and Chicago-area business activity.

Later in the day, traders largely shrugged off the results of the Treasury Department's auction of $29 billion worth of seven-year notes.

The seven-year note auction drew a high yield of 1.96 percent and a bid-to-cover ratio of 2.63, while the ten previous seven-year note auctions had an average bid-to-cover ratio of 2.57.

The bid-to-cover ratio is a measure of demand that indicates the amount of bids for each dollar worth of securities being sold.

Following the holiday on Thursday, activity is likely to be subdued when trading resumes on Friday due to the abbreviated session and a lack of major U.S. economic data.