Commodities : Friday, Dec. 5, 1986 : Treasury Futures Nose-Dive

Interest rate futures took a nose dive on Friday after the government released the latest set of numbers on unemployment.

Treasury bond futures lost close to 2 points on the Chicago Board of Trade.

On some other markets, coffee was down the limit; cattle futures were mostly lower while pork was higher; soybeans and corn were mostly lower, and wheat was higher.

Labor Department figures showing the economy created 249,000 new jobs in November were far above what was expected in the credit markets “and miles above some of the rumors that had been going around,” said Larry Morgan, an analyst in Chicago with Dean Witter Reynolds.

Also, he said, the downward revision in October figures had been expected or perhaps a little less than expected, and there was an upward revision in the number of new jobs for September.

“The report was bearish all around,” Morgan said.

Even before the Labor Department report was released, Treasury bonds were under pressure from being overbought during a runup of the last several days, he said.

The continuing decline as the session wore on triggered sell stops, and prices plunged even lower.