Treasury Maintains Auctions; Buybacks Start Sept 10

The U.S. Treasury will keep its regular debt auctions intact while expanding the size of buybacks for longer-dated securities, starting September 10, in a bid to lower yields and boost market liquidity without reducing primary issuance. The plan doubles quarterly repurchases for 10- to 30-year maturities, with the per-operation buyback floor rising from $2 billion to at least $4 billion, though no purchases have yet been made under the expanded program. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent emphasized at a press conference focused on Iran sanctions that the department will continue its usual auction calendar and will begin the broader buyback activity on schedule, even as yields previously moved lower before retracing. Analysts and traders noted that the strategy aims to manage debt costs and market stability, while the funding for buybacks could come from the Treasury General Account rather than issuing new debt. The overall effect has been mixed in markets, with initial yield declines giving way to modest declines as longer-dated bonds cooled, underscoring the challenging environment for financing federal debt.