Treasuries turned in a lackluster performance over the course of the trading day on Monday before eventually ending the session slightly lower.
After seeing modest strength for much of the morning, bond prices dipped below the unchanged line in the afternoon. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, inched up by less than a basis point to 1.668 percent.
With the slight increase on the day, the ten-year yield regained some ground after tumbling to a four-month closing low last Friday.
The lack of direction shown by treasuries throughout most of the trading day came on the heels of the release of a mixed batch of U.S. economic data.
While the Commerce Department released a report showing that personal income rose by less than expected in March, the report also showed slightly stronger than expected personal spending growth.
The report showed that personal income rose by 0.2 percent in March after surging up by 1.1 percent in February. Economists had expected income to increase by about 0.4 percent.
Meanwhile, the Commerce Department said personal spending also climbed 0.2 percent in March following a 0.7 percent increase in February. Spending had been expected to edge up by 0.1 percent.
A separate report from the National Association of Realtors showed that pending home sales increased more than anticipated in March, although the trade group noted that contract activity in recent months shows only modest movement.
NAR said its pending home sales index rose 1.5 percent to 105.7 in March after falling by 1 percent to a downwardly revised 104.1 in February. Economists had expected pending home sales to rebound by about 1 percent.
A pending home sale is one in which a contract was signed but not yet closed. Normally, it takes four to six weeks to close a contracted sale.
The choppy trading in the bond market also came as traders seemed reluctant to make any significant moves ahead of the Federal Reserve's monetary policy announcement on Wednesday and the Labor Department's monthly jobs report on Friday.
While activity may subsequently remain subdued on Tuesday, traders are likely to keep an eye on reports on home prices, consumer confidence, and Chicago-area business activity.
For comments and feedback: editorial@rttnews.com