Treasuries Close Roughly Flat Ahead Of Long Weekend

(RTTNews) - After an early move to the upside, treasuries pulled back over the course of the trading day on Friday before closing roughly flat.

Bond prices spent the afternoon lingering near the unchanged line. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, edged down by less than a basis point to 2.250 percent.

The choppy trading came as many traders were already away from their desks, looking to get a head start on the long Memorial Day weekend.

Traders largely shrugged off the latest economic data, including a report from the Commerce Department showing that the U.S. economy grew by much more than initially estimated in the first three months of the year.

The Commerce Department said gross domestic product climbed by 1.2 percent in the first quarter compared to the previously reported 0.7 percent increase.

Economists had been expecting a more modest upward revision to the pace of GDP growth to approximately 0.9 percent.

ING Senior Economist James Knightley noted the upwardly revised first quarter GDP growth is still poor relative to the majority of other developed markets.

A separate Commerce Department report showed that new orders for manufactured durable goods pulled back by less than expected in the month of April.

The report said durable goods orders slid by 0.7 percent in April after jumping by an upwardly revised 2.3 percent in March. Economists had expected orders to slump by 1.4 percent.

Excluding a drop in orders for transportation equipment, durable goods orders still fell by 0.4 percent in April after climbing by 0.8 percent in March. Ex-transportation orders were expected to rise by 0.4 percent.

Meanwhile, the University of Michigan released revised data showing that consumer sentiment in May was virtually unchanged from the previous month.

Following the long holiday weekend, economic data is likely to be in focus next week, with the monthly jobs report expected to be in the spotlight.

Reports on personal income and spending, consumer confidence, pending home sales, and manufacturing activity may also attract attention.

The Federal Reserve is also due to release its Beige Book, which may shed additional light on next month's interest rate decision.