CNBC Daily Open: Treasury attempts to rein in bond yields as U.S. debt swells past $40 trillion
On Wednesday, the Treasury Department's decision to double its purchases of longer-dated bonds sent yields lower and gave stocks some breathing room.
TL;DR
- U.S. Treasury Department to double purchases of 10- to 30-year bonds, from $2 billion to at least $4 billion per operation over two months.
- Move aims to depress bond yields and support stock prices; major U.S. indexes rose about 0.2%.
- National debt surpasses $40 trillion, with government deficit at $1.8 trillion this year.
- Interest on debt totals nearly $1.2 trillion this year, a major budget expenditure.
- Donald Trump criticized the Federal Reserve's interest rates and threatened economic action against Iran.
- Moderna and Merck reported encouraging initial results from a late-stage trial of their personalized cancer vaccine.
- Nvidia is facilitating AI data center deals in the Nordics by connecting companies with GPUs to data center operators.