WASHINGTON (AP) Interest rates on short-term Treasury bills rose in Tuesday's auction to their highest levels in four weeks.
The Treasury Department auctioned $33 billion in three-month bills at a discount rate of 0.075 percent, up from 0.050 percent last week. Another $29 billion in six-month bills was auctionedat a discount rate of 0.095 percent, up from 0.085 percent last week.
The three-month rate was the highest since these bills averaged 0.130 percent four weeks ago on Oct. 15. The six-month rate was the highest since these bills averaged 0.150 percent, also on Oct. 15.
The discount rates reflect that the bills sell for less than face value. For a $10,000 bill, the three-month price was $9,998.10, while a six-month bill sold for $9,995.20. That would equal an annualized rate of 0.076 percent for the three-month bills and 0.096 percent for the six-month bills.
The weekly auction of three-month and six-month bills took place on Tuesday rather than Monday because of the Veterans' Day holiday.
Separately, the Federal Reserve said Tuesday that the average yield for one-year Treasury bills, a popular index for making changes in adjustable rate mortgages, was 0.11 percent last week, unchanged from the previous week.
