South Korean government bond prices tumbled as in elsewhere around the globe as investors await confirmation on the second rate hike by the U.S. Federal Reserve in just three months after the last move in December in the next meeting on March 15.
Korean bond yields all around the curve have been refreshing annual highs. The yield on Fed-sensitive three-year bond ended Tuesday at 1.784 percent, 3.8 basis points higher from the previous day. The longer bonds yields also followed the U.S. Treasury movements that have reached multiyear highs in the market’s biggest response since the election of Donald Trump amid anticipation for faster-than-expected tightening pace.
The 10-year government bond yield closed Tuesday 4.6 basis points higher at 2.31 percent while the yield 30-year treasury notes jumped 7.1 basis points to 2.39 percent.
In the first seven days in March, foreign investors net sold 162 billion won ($140.9 million) in Korean government bonds.
A new 30-year government bond was sold Tuesday at 2.369 percent, 5.4 basis points above market expectations, as investors lost appetite for long-term notes amid uncertainty in the bond market.
Lending rates at commercial banks also rose trailing the market yields.
By Chung Ji-sung and Park Yoon-gu
[ⓒ Pulse by Maeil Business News Korea & mk.co.kr, All rights reserved]