T-Bill Rates Reach 3-Year Highs in Auction

The Treasury Department sold $21 billion in three-month bills at a discount rate of 2.045%, up from 1.95% last week. It sold $19 billion in six-month bills at 2.26%, up from 2.14%.

The three-month rate was the highest since Oct. 29, 2001, when the bills sold for 2.05%. The six-month rate was the highest since Oct. 1, 2001, when it was 2.325%.

The new rates understate the actual return to investors: 2.084% for three-month bills, with a $10,000 bill selling for $9,948.88, and 2.318% for a six-month bill selling for $9,886.37.

In a separate report, the Federal Reserve said the average yield for one-year constant-maturity Treasury bills, a popular index for making changes in adjustable-rate mortgages, rose to 2.35% last week from 2.27% the previous week.