A trader works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange during the opening bell on Nov. 26, 2024.
U.S. Treasury yields moved slightly lower on Tuesday as investors parsed economic data due ahead of the Federal Reserve's next interest rate decision.
The yield on the 10-year Treasury was down 1.8 basis points at 4.381%. The 2-year Treasury yield was last 1.1 basis points lower at 4.238%.
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Yields and prices move in opposite directions. One basis point equals 0.01%.
U.S. retail sales figures for November showed an increase of 0.7% on the month, surpassing Wall Street's expectations. The report will be followed by the latest building permit and housing starts data on Wednesday, before the Fed announces its interest rate decision that same day.
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A rate cut is widely expected from the Fed, with traders pricing in a more than 98% chance of a reduction according to CME Group's FedWatch Tool. Markets are widely anticipating a 25-basis-point trim.
This would be the third consecutive interest rate reduction from the Fed, which slashed rates by 50 basis points in September and by 25 basis points in November.
Investors will also be closely following the postmeeting press conference with Fed Chair Jerome Powell, as well as keeping an eye on any guidance issued by the central bank. This will include the Fed's economic and interest rate projections, which are published four times a year.
Money Report
The Fed's meeting comes after the European Central Bank last week cut interest rates by a quarter point in its fourth reduction of the year. In the U.K., the Bank of England is set to make its own rate decision later this week.
