Treasury Yields Tumble To Nearly 4-week Low After Fed Minutes

Treasury yields extended Wednesday their decline to their lowest levels in nearly four weeks after minutes from the Federal Reserve's December meeting showed that the first interest-rate increase in nearly a decade was a "close call" for some officials. A flight to the safety in U.S. government bonds helped push Treasury yields lower earlier in the session on worries about North Korea's nuclear capability and sluggish growth in China. Central bankers highlighted in the minutes their "significant concern about still-low readings on actual inflation and the uncertainty and risks present in the inflation outlook." The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell 6.2 basis points to 2.186%, its lowest point since Dec. 11, according to Tradeweb. Bond yields fall when prices rise and vice versa. The yield on the two-year Treasury note lost 3.2 basis points to 0.996%, while the yield on the 30-year Treasury bond declined by 6.4 basis points to 2.947%.