U.S. government debt prices edged lower on Thursday, as investors digested political news from the U.S. and braced themselves for an election in Europe.
The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note edged higher at around 2.204 percent at 1:46 p.m. ET, while the yield on the 30-year Treasury bond was up at 2.857 percent. Bond yields move inversely to prices.
Treasurys
On Thursday, U.S. investors paid close attention to a testimony by former FBI Director James Comey, who spoke and answered questions in front of the Senate Intelligence Committee; marking the first time the former director will speak publicly since being dismissed by President Donald Trump.
In his testimony, Comey said he kept records of his conversations with Trump — something he did not do when Barack Obama was president — because he thought Trump might "lie."
Meanwhile in Europe, U.K. citizens are heading to polling stations Thursday, to vote in the British general election which was called earlier this year. Investors will keeping a close eye on moves in sterling over the next two days, to see how the currency reacts to the election outcome.
Earlier on Thursday, the European Central Bank's governing council kept interest rates unchanged, as was widely expected. This marks the fifth consecutive quarter that the central bank has held rates steady at 0.00 percent.