Treasuries Move Significantly Lower As Crude Oil Resumes Surge

(RTTNews) - Treasuries moved significantly lower during trading on Thursday, extending the downward move seen over the past few days.

Bond priced slumped early in the session and remained firmly negative throughout the day. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, surged 6.6 basis points to 4.146 percent.

The continued weakness among treasuries came as the price of crude oil resumed the surge earlier in the week, adding to recent inflation concerns.

Crude oil has skyrocketed above $80 a barrel amid ongoing supply disruption worries due to the expanding conflict in the Middle East.

Iran has claimed it struck a U.S. oil tanker in the northern Persian Gulf, raising fears of a wider conflict after the Islamic republic threatened to halt shipping through the vital Strait of Hormuz.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has also signaled a possible longer time frame for the conflict than has previously been floated by the Trump administration, saying the war could last up to eight weeks but might be over sooner.

Meanwhile, a day ahead of the release of the more closely watched monthly jobs report, the Labor Department released a report showing first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits came in flat in the week ended February 28th.

The monthly jobs report is likely to be in the spotlight on Friday, although a report on retail sales may also impact trading along with the latest developments in the Middle East.