Bessent announces $6 billion Treasury debt buyback plan

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced that the United States would buy back $6 billion in government debt. The planned purchase of Treasury securities was intended to ease a selloff in the U.S. bond market that has put pressure on interest rates.

Treasury yields continued to rise Wednesday even after Bessent specified the $6 billion target. Yields had also been climbing in the weeks since his earlier announcement of the operation.

Inflation and uncertainty surrounding the war in Iran have unsettled investors in U.S. government bonds. The yield on the 30-year Treasury bond reached about 5.2%, its highest level since the 2008 financial crisis.

Higher yields could eventually translate into higher interest rates on mortgages, student debt and car loans, because those forms of borrowing are often linked to the bond market.