U.S. Treasury Department announces bond purchases to ease market pressure and support stock gains
The U.S. Treasury Department announced it will at least double the size of its planned purchases of longer-term Treasurys from September 9 through November 4. This move is intended to provide greater liquidity support in longer-dated nominal sectors where there is consistent strong sponsorship from market participants. Following this announcement, the 10-year Treasury yield sank to 4.64% from 4.71% late Tuesday, and the 30-year Treasury yield fell sharply to 5.19% from 5.28% late Tuesday. U.S. stocks are ticking higher on Wednesday, supported by the Treasury Department's action and strong profit reports from companies like Estee Lauder, Target, and Lowe’s. Estee Lauder reported earnings per share of 39 cents, exceeding analyst expectations. While some Big Tech stocks like Broadcom fell due to concerns over the sustainability of the artificial-intelligence boom, the overall market remains bolstered by corporate profits. President Trump has previously lobbied for the Federal Reserve to lower interest rates to help the economy.