6-Month T-Bill Rate at Lowest Level on Record

The Treasury Department sold $16 billion in three-month bills at a discount rate of 1.6%, down from 1.68% last week. An additional $16 billion was sold in six-month bills at 1.555%, down from 1.69%.

The three-month rate was the lowest since Jan. 14, when the bills sold for 1.53%. The six-month rate was the lowest since the government began selling the bills in 1958.

The new discount rates understate the actual return to investors--1.627% for three-month bills, with a $10,000 bill selling for $9,959.60, and 1.589% for a six-month bill selling for $9,921.40.

Separately, the Federal Reserve said the average yield for one-year constant-maturity Treasury bills, the most popular index for making changes in adjustable-rate mortgages, dipped to 1.82% last week from 1.88% the previous week.