Treasuries Finish Choppy Trading Day Slightly Lower

(RTTNews) - Following the strong upward move seen to start the week, treasuries showed a lack of direction over the course of the trading session on Wednesday.

Bond prices spent the day bouncing back and forth across the unchanged line before closing slightly lower. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, crept up by nearly a basis point to 4.319 percent.

The choppy trading on the day came as traders weighed the prospects of an end to the U.S. war with Iran against the release of a batch of upbeat U.S. economic data.

Treasuries initially moved to the upside in reaction to the latest comments by President Donald Trump, who told reporters at the White House on Tuesday he expects U.S. military forces to leave Iran in "two or three weeks."

The president argued that the U.S. does not have to reach a negotiated settlement to end the war with Iran, calling a deal "irrelevant" because "everything's been bombed out."

Trump later claimed in a Truth Social post this morning that Iran's "new regime president" has asked for a ceasefire, which he said the U.S. would consider when the Strait of Hormuz is "open, free, and clear."

However, in response to Trump's post, a report from Al Jazeera said an Iranian official clearly denied that Tehran has requested a ceasefire.

Treasuries gave back ground following the release of a report from payroll processor ADP showing private sector employment in the U.S. increased by more than expected in the month of March.

ADP said private sector employment grew by 62,000 jobs in March after climbing by an upwardly revised 66,000 jobs in February.

Economists had expected private sector employment to rise by 40,000 jobs compared to the addition of 63,000 jobs originally reported for the previous month.

A separate report released by the Institute for Supply Management unexpectedly showed slightly faster growth in U.S. manufacturing activity in the month of March.

The Commerce Department also released a delayed report showing retail sales in the U.S. increased by slightly more than expected in the month of February.

While a retreat by crude oil prices in reaction to the developments regarding Iran has helped ease inflation concerns, the strong economic data may keep the Federal Reserve reluctant to resume cutting interest rates in the near future.