On Wednesday, September 16, 2026, television stations broadcast Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh speaking after a Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting while working as a trader on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, USA.
Michael Nagle | Bloomberg | Getty Images
U.S. Treasury yields fell slightly on Thursday, a day after the Federal Reserve raised interest rates for the first time in three years.
The benchmark 10-year Treasury yield fell more than 5 basis points to 4.951%. The 30-year yield fell more than 5 basis points to 5.297%, while the 2-year yield fell more than 3 basis points to 4.692%.
One basis point equals 0.01%, and yields and prices move in opposite directions.
The Federal Reserve on Wednesday raised its benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points to its target range of 3.75% to 4%, the first rate hike since July 2023. Markets had widely expected the central bank to approve a rate hike following a hot set of inflation data and pressure on the bond market.
Inflation has been “too high for far too long,” Fed Chairman Kevin Warsh said at a press conference Wednesday.
“We must be confident that underlying inflation is clearly and sufficiently moving toward our goals,” he said, adding that the Federal Open Market Committee had determined that “this standard has not been met.”
Fed officials also indicated that further rate hikes are likely before the end of the year. According to a dot-plot grid of each official’s predictions, 16 out of 18 participants expected another rate hike, and four thought there was a possibility of two more hikes.
Traders are also keeping an eye on the working relationship between Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh and President Donald Trump, as the latter continues to push for lower interest rates.
“Interest rates in the United States should be below 1% because America is by far the best credit in the world,” President Trump said in a social media post.
He also told reporters Wednesday that the Fed’s board is “very adversarial, very political” and “doing the wrong thing.”
Bob Edwards, chief investment officer of Florida-based Edwards Asset Management, said in a note Thursday that the bond market’s biggest moves are “likely now in the rearview mirror.”
“This big move presents a good opportunity for investors to lock in higher yields,” he said. “If the Fed were to raise rates again, it would likely be at its December meeting. The Fed is unlikely to announce rate changes at its October meeting, just days before the midterm elections, for fear of being seen as political.”
Investors looked to Thursday’s economic data for further clues about the health of the economy. The number of jobless claims for the week ending September 12 was 196,000, lower than the 207,000 expected by economists compiled by Dow Jones. The number of housing starts in August was also lower than expected.
—CNBC’s Jeff Cox and Justina Lee contributed to this article.
