U.S. Treasury yields climbed on Wednesday as investors considered the latest inflation data and weighed the state of the economy.
The yield on the 10-year Treasury was last 2.5 basis points higher at 4.178%. The 2-year Treasury yield was last at 4.61% after also rising by 1.2 basis points.
Yields and prices move in opposite directions and one basis point equals 0.01%.
Investors digested Tuesday’s consumer price index data, which came in just above expectations. Prices rose 0.4% on a monthly basis and 3.2% on an annual basis in February, the CPI showed. Economists previously surveyed by Dow Jones had been looking for increases of 0.4% and 3.1%, respectively.
The so-called core CPI, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, was 0.4% higher than in January and up 3.8% from a year earlier, which was also slightly higher than anticipated.
While inflation has eased from its 2022 highs, it remains higher than the Federal Reserve’s 2% target range. Fed officials have frequently indicated that they are looking to economic data for evidence that inflation is moving back toward this target before making decisions about interest rate cuts.
They have given few indications about a potential timeline for rate cuts, though Fed Chairman Jerome Powell last week indicated that the first cut may not be far off.
Traders were last pricing in a 65% chance of the first rate cut taking place in June, according to CME Group’s FedWatch tool. Two Fed meetings are scheduled before then, including one next week from which investors are hoping to gain fresh insights into the outlook for interest rates.
Further inflation insights are expected Thursday in form of the producer price index for February.
