Long-Term Treasury Yields Stay Above 5% as Bitcoin Faces Pressure

Long-term U.S. Treasury yields stayed above 5% on Oct. 5 and Oct. 6, while bond-market volatility was elevated and Bitcoin declined in early October.

The 10-year Treasury yield was 5.31% on Oct. 5 and 5.27% on Oct. 6. The 30-year yield was 5.66% and 5.64%, respectively, while the two-year yield was 4.84% on Oct. 5 and 4.79% on Oct. 6.

The yields were based on market quotations collected at or near 3:30 p.m. ET (19:30 UTC).

The ICE BofA MOVE Index, which measures expected volatility in U.S. fixed-income markets, was approximately 113.6 points in readings tied to Oct. 5-6. A higher MOVE reading indicates greater expected volatility in Treasury markets, but it does not determine the direction of Bitcoin or other assets.

Higher Treasury yields can increase borrowing costs and make fixed-income investments more attractive relative to riskier assets such as cryptocurrencies. That relationship can weigh on assets whose valuations are sensitive to liquidity and financing conditions.

The market data show elevated yields and bond-market volatility, but they do not establish that a new global financial hegemon is emerging. They also do not show that Bitcoin is replacing Treasury securities or the U.S. dollar as the world’s primary liquidity reserve.