Treasury auctions · 2-Year Note

2-year note auction of 27 January 2009 (new issue)

The 2-year note sold $41.698 billion at a high yield of 0.925% on , with a bid-to-cover ratio of 2.69.

High yield at each 2-year note auction

The last 36 auctions, this one last

High yield at each 2-year note auction, 22 Feb 2006 to 27 Jan 2009
High yield at each 2-year note auction, 21 Feb 2007 to 27 Jan 2009

Bid-to-cover ratio at each 2-year note auction

The last 36 auctions, this one last

Bid-to-cover ratio at each 2-year note auction, 22 Feb 2006 to 27 Jan 2009
Bid-to-cover ratio at each 2-year note auction, 21 Feb 2007 to 27 Jan 2009

Who bought the 2-year note of 27 Jan 2009

Shares of the competitive bids accepted

  • Indirect bidders 34.6%
  • Direct bidders 2.8%
  • Primary dealers 62.5%
This auction, 27 Jan 2009
  • Indirect bidders 30.4%
  • Direct bidders 1.4%
  • Primary dealers 68.2%
The 2-year note auction before, 22 Dec 2008

Each point is one 2-year note auction, this one last; pointing at the chart shows its date and figures.

Select a line to followLatest:

  • Indirect bidders34.6%
Inspect and compare dates
High yield and bid-to-cover of the last 36 2-year note auctions, newest first
AuctionHigh yield, %Bid-to-cover
0.9252.69
0.9222.13
1.2692.08
1.6002.49
2.1152.21
2.3802.18
2.8202.42
2.9222.64
2.6402.28
2.2252.21
1.7612.44
2.0452.14
2.2372.33
3.2852.23
3.1592.21
3.7232.86
4.0003.29
4.1153.97
4.7352.59
4.9062.80
4.8862.53
4.6062.93
4.5142.81
4.8303.04
4.9303.03
4.7652.46
4.6923.02
4.8942.91
4.6602.77
4.9212.32
5.0902.03
5.2392.28
4.9332.58
4.9752.05
4.7302.12
4.6892.24

Observed .

Right now

The high yield was 0.925% on 27 January 2009, up from 0.922% at the auction before.

The bid-to-cover ratio of 2.69 was the highest for a 2-year note since 24 October 2007, with 14 auctions in between.

Its own history

The direct bidders' share was higher than 8 of all 9 earlier 2-year note auctions we hold.

The high yield was higher than 1 of the previous 24 2-year note auctions.

See every measure against earlier auctions

Who bought

Primary dealers took the largest share of the competitive bids accepted.

  • Indirect bidders 34.6%
  • Direct bidders 2.8%
  • Primary dealers 62.5%

Size

Treasury sold $41.698 billion of the $40 billion offered.

Bids received came to $109.336 billion; the bid-to-cover ratio was 2.69.

Its bid-to-cover of 2.69 compares with the 24 auctions before it: lowest 2.08 on , highest 3.97 on ; 32.3% of the way from the low to the high.

2.69

Low 2.08 Midpoint 3.025 High 3.97

The security2-Year, new issue

Coupon
0.875%
Announced
Issued
Matures

It adds to the debt that matures in January 2011.

Understanding this result

Where it stands today

The high yield was 0.925% at this 2-year note auction, the median yield 0.871% and a bid-to-cover ratio of 2.69.

What do these figures measure?

The high yield is the highest rate Treasury accepted; every winning bidder gets it. The bid-to-cover ratio is bids received divided by the amount sold. Shares are of competitive bids accepted. High minus median shows how far the accepted cut-off sat above the middle accepted bid; it is not the market's auction tail, which needs a when-issued price that is not public.

Read more

How does it compare with the par yield curve?

The par yield curve comparison sets the high yield against Treasury's own par yield curve on the auction day, at the point nearest this security's maturity (2-year). Treasury fixes that curve from market quotes in the late afternoon, after the auction closed, so the gap mixes the auction's pricing with the afternoon's market move. It is not the auction tail either.

What these figures cannot tell

  • Why it sold where it did. Results show what was bid and accepted, not the reasons behind any bid.
  • The auction tail as markets quote it. That compares the high yield with the when-issued yield just before bids closed, a market price that is not public; we show high minus median instead, a different measure.
  • Who the bidders are. Indirect bidders include foreign and international accounts bidding through the New York Fed and investors bidding through dealers; Treasury does not publish names.
  • Demand on another day. A bid-to-cover ratio counts bids at one auction against the amount offered, and the amount offered changes from auction to auction.

The numbers behind the chart

What did Treasury publish for this auction?Every field, to the dollar
2-year note auction of 27 January 2009: Treasury's published result, with our shares and spread marked "ours"
FieldValue
Offered as2-Year, new issue
Offering amount$40,000,000,000
Bids received$109,336,066,400
Sold$41,697,871,400
Competitive bids accepted$39,578,255,000
Non-competitive bids accepted$421,822,600
Federal Reserve (SOMA) add-on$1,697,793,800
Foreign and international (FIMA) non-competitive$0
High yield, %0.925
Median rate, %0.871
Low rate, %0.783
Interest rate (coupon), %0.875
Bids at the high rate filled, %33.41
Bid-to-cover ratio2.69
Indirect bidders accepted$13,706,860,000
Direct bidders accepted$1,118,000,000
Primary dealers accepted$24,753,395,000
Indirect bidders' share, % (ours)34.6
Direct bidders' share, % (ours)2.8
Primary dealers' share, % (ours)62.5
High minus median, basis points (ours)5.4
Treasury par yield curve, 2-year point, same day, %0.87
High yield minus that point, basis points (ours)5.5
How does it compare with earlier auctions?The previous 12 auctions, then every window
Against the previous 12 auctions of the 2-year note
MeasureThis auctionMedianHigherLower
Bid-to-cover ratio2.692.240 of 1212 of 12
High yield0.9252.17011 of 121 of 12
Indirect bidders' share34.630.43 of 96 of 9
Direct bidders' share2.81.01 of 98 of 9
Primary dealers' share62.565.87 of 92 of 9
High minus median, basis points5.44.43 of 129 of 12

The table scrolls sideways; the first column stays in place.

The longer windows

Each measure against earlier 2-year note auctions: how many were higher and lower, and their median
MeasureThis auctionWindowHigherLowerMedian
Bid-to-cover ratio2.69Last 24 auctions8 of 2416 of 242.46
Bid-to-cover ratio2.69Since 23 April 20080 of 99 of 92.21
Bid-to-cover ratio2.69All 108 since 27 October 199915 of 10889 of 1082.26
High yield0.925Last 24 auctions23 of 241 of 243.040
High yield0.925Since 23 April 20088 of 91 of 92.225
High yield0.925All 342 since 23 January 1980341 of 3421 of 3426.006
Indirect bidders' share34.6All 9 since 23 April 20083 of 96 of 930.4
Direct bidders' share2.8All 9 since 23 April 20081 of 98 of 91.0
Primary dealers' share62.5All 9 since 23 April 20087 of 92 of 965.8
High minus median, basis points5.4Last 24 auctions3 of 2421 of 242.5
High minus median, basis points5.4Since 23 April 20083 of 96 of 95.0
High minus median, basis points5.4All 342 since 23 January 198014 of 342328 of 3422.0

The table scrolls sideways; the first column stays in place.

When are the figures from, and how are they cited?Dates and how to cite

Observed .

Shares of competitive bids, grades against earlier auctions and the high-minus-median spread are computed by 500metrics from Treasury's published fields.

Observed .

How to cite this

U.S. Treasury, Bureau of the Fiscal Service, Fiscal Data, Treasury Securities Auctions Data, auction of 27 January 2009. Results file: https://www.treasurydirect.gov/instit/annceresult/press/preanre/2009/R_20090127_2.pdf. Compiled by 500metrics, "2-year note auction of 27 January 2009 (new issue)", https://500metrics.com/treasury/auctions/2-year-note/2009-01-27.

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