U.S. Treasury Yields Rise Modestly on Profit Booking

The U.S government bonds slumped as investors booked profit on last day of the week after long weekly rally due to FOMC decision. Also, firm crude oil prices drove investors from safe-haven assets. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which moves inversely to its price, moved higher 1.96 pct to 1.874 pct and the yield on the 2-year Treasury bond rose 2.08 pct to 0.805 pct by 1230 GMT.

Yesterday, the United States Q1 GDP rose 0.5 pct q/q (annualized), lower than the market expectation of 0.7 pct q/q, from 1.4 pct in the previous quarter. Similarly, personal consumption increased 1.9 pct, against market anticipation of 1.7 pct, from 2.4% in the last quarter of 2015. Moreover, exports tumbled 2.8 pct, from prior down 2 pct, alongside a 0.2 pct increase from imports. Business investments also decline 5.9 pct, alongside the deceleration seen in the headline measure, this report clearly reflects the weaker tone of data seen to