Brian Chappatta, Columnist

Bond Traders Are Too Election-Shy for a Yield Breakout

Rates on long-term U.S. Treasuries look set to soar, but investors will probably wait until they have a clearer sense of how Americans voted first.

October 26, 2020 at 10:00 AM UTC

By Brian Chappatta

Brian Chappatta is managing editor of Bloomberg News' leveraged finance and distressed debt teams. He was previously managing editor and team leader of its wealth group. Before that he was a Bloomberg Opinion markets and finance columnist and a bonds reporter for Bloomberg News.

Awaiting a blue wave and more stimulus.
Photographer: Sarah Silbiger/Getty Images

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Heading into last Friday, there was no shortage of superlatives to describe the rise in long-term yields in the $20.4 trillion U.S. Treasury market. Just to name a few:

This steady march higher in yields came in the face of wildly conflicting and ambiguous updates about the state of play of fiscal aid talks between Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, along with reports that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell sought to get President Donald Trump to torpedo the negotiations entirely. Stocks whipsawed; bonds were resolute.