The yield on the 10-year US Treasury note rose to the 4.16% mark on Thursday, approaching the four-month highs of 4.2% that were tested earlier in the week as fresh evidence of a stable market limited the urgency for the Federal Reserve to lower interest rates. Initial unemployment claims were sharply below expectations to hold the decrease in average claim counts since December, extending the view that the US labor market has not seen a significant increase in job cuts despite the prolonged period of higher interest rates. The results limited concerns that the Fed must continue to lower interest rates to prop up the labor market, as argued by dovish members of the FOMC. Meanwhile, President Trump ordered the Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae to purchase $200 billion in mortgage backed securities by next week, likely supporting fixed income assets of longer maturities.
