Treasuries Finish Lackluster Session In Positive Territory

(RTTNews) - Treasuries turned in a lackluster performance throughout much of the trading session on Monday but managed to end the day in positive territory.

Bond prices moved to the upside in afternoon trading after spending the morning lingering near the unchanged line. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, fell by 2.1 basis points to 3.986 percent.

The strength among treasuries came despite a rally on Wall Street, with stocks extending the upward move seen last Friday amid a surge by shares of tech giant Apple (AAPL).

Treasuries may have benefitted from lingering concerns about the outlook for the U.S. economy amid the ongoing government shutdown.

While the shutdown has led to the indefinite delay of the release of key economic data, recent signs of sluggishness in the labor market have led to widespread expectations of further interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve later this year

CME Group's FedWatch Tool is currently indicating a 98.9 percent chance the Fed will cut rates by a quarter point later this month and a 96.1 percent chance of another quarter point rate cut in December.

Despite the government shutdown, the Bureau of Labor Statistic is due to release its consumer price index data on Friday, as it allows the Social Security Administration to meet statutory deadlines necessary to ensure the accurate and timely payment of benefits.