U.S. Treasury yields fell Wednesday after private payrolls data showed a surprise decline for last month.
The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note dipped 2 basis points to 1.77%. The yield on the 30-year Treasury bond dipped nearly 3 basis points to 2.095%. Yields move inversely to prices, and 1 basis point is equal to 0.01%.
Private U.S. payrolls fell by 301,000 in January, according to ADP. Economists polled by Dow Jones expected 200,000 to have been added last month. This marks the first time in more than a year that private payrolls fell.
The unexpected decline came as the U.S. grappled with a new wave of Covid-19 cases, thanks to the spread of the omicron variant.
Those numbers also come ahead of Friday’s nonfarm payrolls report, which economists expect will show a gain of 150,000 jobs last month.
Investors have been keeping a close eye on the economic data lately, as the Federal Reserve gets ready to raise rates and tighten monetary policy.
According to data released by the U.S. Labor Department on Tuesday, job openings totaled nearly 11 million in December, more than 4.6 million above the total unemployment level. Meanwhile, the so-called “quits” level declined in December, indicating a slowdown in what has become known as the Great Resignation.
— CNBC’s Maggie Fitzgerald and Jeff Cox contributed to this market report.