After yesterday's Fed announcement and press conference, longer-term bond yields moved quickly into a position to challenge the prevailing range floor which can be viewed as anything within 5-6 bps of 3.34%. Yields haven't spent more than 2 days below that level since September and we wouldn't be shocked if they'd need more convincing from the upcoming data or a more serious turn of events in the banking sector.
After a flat overnight session, this morning's data and events helped to reinforce the floor. While the market continues to wait on the long-expected showdown with NFP and next week's CPI, new bank headlines are causing additional volatility in the AM hours. Whether fabrication, truth, or something in between, FT.com is reporting a potential sale of Western Alliance. The bank denied the rumor, but the market response remains intact. It was the biggest volume surge of the day so far.