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Treasuries moved lower over the course of the trading session on Friday, extending the downward trend seen over the past few days.
Bond prices saw modest weakness in morning trading before seeing further downside in the afternoon. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, climbed 3.5 basis points to 2.302 percent.
The ten-year yield closed higher for the fourth straight session, reaching its highest closing level in well over a month.
The continued weakness among treasuries was partly due to the release of a batch of largely upbeat U.S. economic data.
A report from the Commerce Department showed that personal income rose by slightly more than anticipated in the month of May, while personal spending inched up in line with estimates.
The Commerce Department said personal income climbed by 0.4 percent in May after rising by a downwardly revised 0.3 percent in April. Economists had expected income to rise by 0.3 percent.
Meanwhile, the report said personal spending inched up by 0.1 percent in May after climbing by 0.4 percent in April. The uptick in spending matched economist estimates.
A reading on inflation said to be preferred by the Federal Reserve showed that core consumer prices were up 1.4 percent year-over-year in May compared to the 1.5 percent increase seen in April.
"Although the real economy is doing well, Fed officials are concerned that isn't translating into stronger inflationary pressures," said Paul Ashworth, Chief U.S. Economist at Capital Economics.
He added, "Nevertheless, with the unemployment rate plummeting even further below its long-run sustainable level, we expect the Fed to push ahead with additional interest rate hikes."
A separate report from MNI Indicators showed an unexpected acceleration in the pace of growth in Chicago-area business activity in the month of June.
MNI Indicators said its Chicago business barometer jumped to 65.7 in June from 59.4 in May, with a reading above 50 indicating growth in activity. The barometer climbed to its highest level in over three years.
The notable increase came as a surprise to economists, who had expected the business barometer to edge down to 58.0.
The University of Michigan also released a report showing that consumer sentiment decreased by less than initially estimated in June.
The report said the consumer sentiment index for June was upwardly revised to 95.1 from the preliminary reading of 94.5. Economists had expected the index to be unrevised.
Despite the upward revision, the consumer sentiment index for June was still down from the final May reading of 97.1.
Trading activity may be somewhat subdued next week due to the July 4th holiday, although traders are likely to keep an eye on the monthly jobs report due next Friday.
Reports on manufacturing and service sector activity may also attract attention along with the minutes of the latest Federal Reserve meeting.
The material has been provided by InstaForex Company - www.instaforex.com]]>
