A decline in global government bonds eased on Friday, after indications that several leading central banks may soon begin unwinding crisis-era stimulus measures knocked the market in the previous session.
The yield on the US 10-year Treasury note, a key benchmark for global borrowing costs, was little changed at 1.41 per cent in European trading after reaching its highest level since mid-July. In London, the yield on the equivalent UK government bond was flat at 0.89 per cent following a sharp rise in the previous trading day.
The steep decline in government bond prices on Thursday was “precipitated by a more hawkish outcome” at the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee meeting, said analysts at JPMorgan. The MPC said after its meeting that the case had “strengthened” for “modest tightening of monetary policy” in the next few years.