Longer-Term Treasury Issuance Unlikely Amid Fed Tightening, Bessent Says
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent dismissed the possibility of increasing the proportion of long-term Treasuries in government debt issuance, citing current hurdles, including the Federal Reserve's quantitative tightening program.
"That's a long way off," Bessent said in an interview with Bloomberg TV on Thursday.
Longer-term U.S. Treasuries rose after Bessent's comments, with 10-year yields declining around three basis points to 4.51%. The move flattened the yield curve.
Earlier this month, the Treasury maintained its guidance on keeping longer-term debt sales unchanged well into 2025, despite Bessent's previous criticism of the issuance strategy of his predecessor, Janet Yellen.
Bessent emphasized that the Fed's reduction in its Treasury holdings effectively creates a competing seller of debt in the market.