U.S. Treasury yields dipped on Friday as investors monitored negotiations between Russia and Ukraine.
The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note fell 4 basis points to 2.151%. The yield on the 30-year Treasury bond moved 5 basis points lower to 2.429%. Yields move inversely to prices and 1 basis point is equal to 0.01%.
Russia and Ukraine have so far made little progress in talks to end the war. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Thursday that Russia and Ukraine were not close to signing a cease-fire agreement.
Russian forces have continued to bombard Ukrainian cities, with several missiles hitting an aircraft repair center on the outskirts of Lviv on Friday.
U.S. President Joe Biden is due to speak with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday about the war, as well as the competition between the U.S. and China.
In addition to tracking developments on Russia’s attack of Ukraine, investors continue to digest a series of monetary policy decisions made by central banks this week.
The Federal Reserve announced on Wednesday that it would be raising its benchmark interest rate by a quarter of a percentage point, its first hike in more than three years.
Remi Olu-Pitan, head of multi-asset growth and income at Schroders, told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Europe” on Friday that while the Fed did strike a hawkish tone on Wednesday, its policy decision was in line with market expectations.
Olu-Pitan added that looking beyond the Fed’s statements to their intended policy plans, the U.S. central bank had made it “quite clear that every meeting is live and they will be raising interest rates.”
“The path of least resistance is higher interest rates to combat inflation, therefore we really need to see a material decline in demand or growth to stop the Fed from raising rates,” she said.
On Friday Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller told CNBC’s “Squawk Box” that the central bank may need to enact at least one more interest rate hike this year of at 50 basis points or more in order to tame inflation.
The Bank of England announced on Thursday that it would be raising rates for a third consecutive meeting.
Meanwhile, the Bank of Japan on Friday decided to hold its monetary policy steady.
On the data front, the number of existing home sales made in February is slated for release at 10 a.m. ET.
There are no auctions scheduled to be held on Friday.
— CNBC’s Chloe Taylor contributed to this market report.