By Ben Eisen, MarketWatch
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Treasury prices sank, sending
benchmark yields sharply higher, after the latest report on jobless
claims signaled further improvement in the labor market
The 10-year Treasury note (10_YEAR) yield, which rises as prices
fall, was up 4.5 basis points early Thursday at 2.598%, its highest
in over three weeks on a closing basis, according to Tradeweb. The
yield is on track to mark its second consecutive day of rises.
The day's economic highlight showed the number of people
applying for unemployment benefits rose by 23,000 last week to
302,000 a week after touching a 14-year low. Nonetheless, the
four-week average fell below 300,000 for the first time since April
2006. The U.S. employment cost index surged in the second
quarter.
The data come ahead of the monthly jobs report on Friday, which
many believe will show continued upward momentum in the labor
market.
Technical factors may also be at play in sending yields higher.
The 10-year yield broke through its 40-day moving average Thursday
morning, which "puts the channel top we've been watching at 2.632%
into the play," according to David Ader, head of government bond
strategy at CRT Capital Group LLC.
Other data on the calendar for Thursday include a Chicago PMI
index reading of business conditions in the Chicago area.
The 2-year note (2_YEAR) yield rose half a basis point to
0.567%, marking a fresh high since the spring of 2011.
The 30-year bond (30_YEAR) yield rose 4.5 basis points to 3.355%
while the 5-year note (5_YEAR) yield rose 2.5 basis points to
1.794%.
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