By Min Zeng
U.S. government bonds sold off broadly on Friday as the latest
employment report raised anxiety that the Federal Reserve may raise
interest rates as soon as June.
The selling sent the yield on the benchmark 10-year note to the
highest intraday level since Jan. 2. Yields rise as bond prices
fall.
In recent trading, the yield was 2.186%, compared with 2.11%
before the data, according to Tradeweb. It was 2.11% on
Thursday.
The U.S. economy added 295,000 new jobs last month, according to
the Labor Department on Friday. Economists polled by The Wall
Street Journal had expected 240,000.
Anxiety over the Fed's rate policy outlook has rattled the bond
market over the past month, and the sell-off has chipped away part
of a steep price rally since the start of 2014.
Fed Chairwoman Janet Yellen said in late February that the
timing to lift borrowing costs for the economy depends on how the
economy performs going forward. U.S. job growth has gained traction
over the past year yet inflation remains stubbornly low, which has
supported the Fed's signal of being patient.
The Fed's next policy meeting is scheduled on March 17-18.
One key focus is whether the Fed is going to drop the word
"patience" from its statement. Ms. Yellen said last month that a
removal of the word doesn't mean a rate increase is imminent, yet
traders say this will be a sign the Fed is moving closer to
tightening.
Write to Min Zeng at min.zeng@wsj.com