Rates Fall At Weekly Treasury Bill Auction

Published January 10, 2012 12:45AM (EST)

WASHINGTON (AP) — Interest rates on short-term Treasury bills fell in Monday's auction.

The Treasury Department auctioned $29 billion in three-month bills at a discount rate of 0.01 percent, down from 0.015 percent last week. Another $27 billion in six-month bills was auctioned at a discount rate of 0.05 percent, down from 0.055 percent last week.

The three-month rate was the lowest since these bills averaged 0.005 percent on Dec. 19. The six-month rate was the lowest since these bills averaged 0.04 percent, also on Dec. 19.

The discount rates reflect that the bills sell for less than face value. For a $10,000 bill, the three-month price was $9,999.75 while a six-month bill sold for $9,997.47. That would equal an annualized rate of 0.010 percent for the three-month bills and 0.051 percent for the six-month bills.

Separately, the Federal Reserve said Monday that the average yield for one-year Treasury bills, a popular index for making changes in adjustable rate mortgages, was unchanged at 0.12 percent last week, the same as the previous week.


By Salon Staff

MORE FROM Salon Staff


Related Topics ------------------------------------------