Treasuries Regain Ground Ahead Of Monthly Jobs Report

(RTTNews) - After pulling back rather sharply over the course of the two previous sessions, treasuries regained some ground during trading on Thursday.

Bond prices moved moderately higher in morning trading before moving roughly sideways in the afternoon. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, rose by 3.4 basis points to 2.234 percent.

The rebound by treasuries came as traders looked ahead to the monthly jobs report due on Friday, which could have a significant impact on the outlook for interest rates.

A strong report would likely add to speculation that the Federal Reserve will raise rates in September, while a weak report could provide ammunition for more dovish central bankers to argue that the rate hike should be delayed.

Economists expect the report to show an increase of about 212,000 jobs in July following the addition of 223,000 jobs in June. The unemployment rate is expected to hold at 5.3 percent.

The Labor Department released a report this morning showing that first-time claims for unemployment benefits edged slightly higher in the week ended August 1st.

The report said initial jobless claims edged up to 270,000, an increase of 3,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 267,000. Economists had expected jobless claims to rise to 273,000.

With the modest increase, jobless claims climbed further off the more than forty-year low of 255,000 set in the week ended July 18th.

The monthly jobs report will be in the spotlight on Friday, with reaction to the data likely to drive trading throughout the session.