Treasuries Close Modestly Lower After Seeing Early Strength

(RTTNews) - After moving modestly higher in early trading on Monday, treasuries turned lower over the course of the trading day.

Bond prices pulled back off their early highs and slid somewhat more firmly into negative territory in afternoon trading. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, rose by 1.8 basis points to 2.536 percent.

With the increase on the day, the ten-year yield added to the gain posted last Friday, climbing further off last Thursday's six-month closing low.

The downturn by treasuries came as traders continued to cash in on some of the recent strength in the bond market.

Selling pressure remained relatively subdued, however, as traders seemed reluctant to make more significant moves amid a lack of major U.S. economic data.

The economic calendar remains light throughout much of the week, although reports on new and existing home sales and weekly jobless claims are likely to attract some attention on Thursday and Friday.

Traders are also likely to keep an eye on the release of the minutes of the latest Federal Reserve meeting on Wednesday, looking for indications regarding the outlook for monetary policy.

While there are no major U.S. economic reports due to be released on Tuesday, trading could be impacted by remarks by Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank President Charles Plosser.