Treasury bill rates mixed at weekly auction

[July 17, 2012]  WASHINGTON (AP) -- Interest rates on short-term Treasury bills were mixed in Monday's auction with rates on three-month bills rising to the highest level in two weeks and rates on six-month bills falling to the lowest level in six weeks.

The Treasury Department auctioned $30 billion in three-month bills at a discount rate of 0.095 percent, up from 0.090 percent last week. An additional $27 billion in six-month bills was auctioned at a discount rate of 0.135 percent, down from 0.145 percent last week.

The three-month rate was the highest since these bills averaged 0.100 percent on July 2. The six-month rate was the lowest since these bills averaged 0.130 percent on June 4.

The discount rates reflect that the bills sell for less than face value. For a $10,000 bill, the three-month price was $9,997.60 while a six-month bill sold for $9,993.18. That would equal an annualized rate of 0.96 percent for the three-month bills and 0.137 percent for the six-month bills.

Separately, the Federal Reserve said Monday that the average yield for one-year Treasury bills, a popular index for making changes in adjustable rate mortgages, was unchanged at 0.20 percent last week, the same as the previous week.

[Associated Press]

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