Definition Treasury notes are sold at regularly scheduled public auctions. The competitive bids at these auctions determine the interest rate paid on each Treasury note issue. Twenty-three primary dealers (as of July 2006) are authorized and obligated to submit competitive tenders at Treasury auctions. Dealers can hold, resell, or trade the securities with other firms. The Treasury announces the amount, date and time of the 5-year note auction monthly. The 5-year notes are announced around the third week of the month (usually on Thursday) and then auctioned the following week (usually Thursday). The 5-year notes are issued (settled) on the last day of the month, unless it falls on a weekend or holiday, and then they are issued on the next business day. Released on 03/29/2007 Yield Awarded 4.535 % Highlights Treasury auctions have been going so well it's rare to find one that's on the soft side. Today's 5-year note auction was awarded at a high yield of 4.535 percent, about 2 basis points above expectations. The bid-to-cover was also soft, at 2.14 vs. a long-term average of just over 2.30. Demand from non-dealers, who took only 16.7 percent of the auction, was definitely soft, in fact the lowest percentage in nearly four years. Despite the weakness, underlying demand for Treasuries, especially from Asia, remains extremely strong. Treasuries did edge lower in reaction to the results, likely the only reaction to the auction that we'll see in today's financial markets. Trends This chart reflects the monthly average yields for 5-year notes in the secondary market. These could be at slight odds with the auction averages in the primary market. Data Source: Haver Analytics Consensus Data Source: Market News International Legal Notices | © 1998-2006 Econoday, Inc. All Rights Reserved.