US Treasury bills rates rise to highest in nearly a decade

Interest rates on short-term Treasury bills rose in Monday's auction, reaching their highest levels in nearly a decade for the third week in a row.

The Treasury Department auctioned $48 billion in three-month bills at a discount rate of 1.895 percent, up from 1.89 percent last week. Another $42 billion in six-month bills was auctioned at a discount rate of 2.08 percent, up from 2.035 percent last week.

The three-month rate was the highest since those bills averaged 1.9 percent on June 30, 2008. The six-month rate was the highest since those bills averaged 2.135 percent, also on June 30, 2008.

The discount rates reflect that the bills sell for less than face value. For a $10,000 bill, the three-month price was $9,952.10 while a six-month bill sold for $9,894.27. That would equal an annualized rate of 1.931 percent for the three-month bills and 2.131 percent for the six-month bills.