U.S. government debt prices rose on Tuesday as investors awaited details from the latest round of U.S.-China trade talks.
The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note slipped to 3.661 percent, while the yield on the 30-year Treasury bond fell to 3.993 percent. Bond yields move inversely to prices.
Fixed income traders turned their attention to the latest session of trade negotiations between Washington and Beijing. The White House said Monday that a new session of trade discussions would take place Tuesday, with higher level talks due later this week.
Tensions between the two countries have heightened as they attempt to strike a deal to prevent any further escalation in tariffs. China on Monday accused the U.S. of blocking its industrial development by claiming Chinese mobile gear could pose a cybersecurity threat to countries rolling out next-generation 5G networks.
Washington has been putting particular pressure on Huawei, the Chinese telecommunications giant, and is attempting to extradite Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou over charges of bank and wire fraud to violate Iran sanctions. The company’s founder Ren Zhengfei — who is also Meng’s father — labelled the move “politically motivated” in an interview with the BBC Monday.
Elsewhere, traders will be on the lookout for the NAHB housing market index on Tuesday, and are anticipating minutes from the Federal Reserve’s latest policy meeting and other economic data later in the week.
Meanwhile Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester is due to give a speech about the economy and monetary policy at Newark, Delaware, on Tuesday.
In auctions news, $45 billion in 13-week Treasury bills and $39 billion in 26-week Treasury bills will be auctioned on Tuesday.