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Treasury auctions · 2-Year Note

2-year note auction of 23 August 2016 (new issue)

The 2-year note sold $27.778 billion at a high yield of 0.760% on , with a bid-to-cover ratio of 2.83.

High yield at each 2-year note auction

The last 36 auctions, this one last

High yield at each 2-year note auction, 23 Apr 2013 to 23 Aug 2016
High yield at each 2-year note auction, 26 Aug 2014 to 23 Aug 2016

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, 23 Apr 2013 to 23 Aug 2016
Bid-to-cover ratio at each 2-year note auction, 26 Aug 2014 to 23 Aug 2016

Who bought the 2-year note of 23 Aug 2016

Shares of the competitive bids accepted

  • Indirect bidders 45.8%
  • Direct bidders 25.2%
  • Primary dealers 29.0%
This auction, 23 Aug 2016
  • Indirect bidders 29.9%
  • Direct bidders 10.3%
  • Primary dealers 59.8%
The 2-year note auction before, 25 Jul 2016

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 bidders45.8%
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
0.7602.83
0.7602.52
0.7452.72
0.9203.00
0.8422.64
0.8772.58
0.8602.90
1.0562.80
0.9483.15
0.6903.42
0.6923.28
0.5403.30
0.5983.46
0.6033.45
0.5403.74
0.7033.21
0.5423.71
0.4253.11
0.5893.56
0.5303.48
0.5443.22
0.5113.23
0.3923.52
0.4473.35
0.4693.20
0.3403.60
0.3803.30
0.3453.77
0.3003.54
0.3233.32
0.3483.09
0.3863.21
0.3363.08
0.4303.05
0.2833.04
0.2333.63

Observed .

Right now

The high yield was 0.760% on 23 August 2016, the same as at the auction before.

The high minus median of 5.0 basis points was the highest for a 2-year note since 25 August 2009, with 78 auctions in between.

Higher than 61 of the 95 since 23 April 2008

Its own history

Against the previous 24 2-year note auctions, the high minus median was higher than all 24.

The direct bidders' share was higher than 21 of them.

See every measure against earlier auctions

Who bought

Indirect bidders took the largest share of the competitive bids accepted.

  • Indirect bidders 45.8%
  • Direct bidders 25.2%
  • Primary dealers 29.0%

Size

Treasury sold $27.778 billion of the $26 billion offered.

Bids received came to $75.379 billion; the bid-to-cover ratio was 2.83.

Its bid-to-cover of 2.83 compares with the 24 auctions before it: lowest 2.52 on , highest 3.74 on ; 25.4% of the way from the low to the high.

2.83

Low 2.52 Midpoint 3.130 High 3.74

The security2-Year, new issue

Coupon
0.750%
Announced
Issued
Matures

It adds to the debt that matures in August 2018.

Understanding this result

Where it stands today

The high yield was 0.760% at this 2-year note auction, the median yield 0.710% and a bid-to-cover ratio of 2.83.

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
FieldValue
Offered as2-Year, new issue
Offering amount$26,000,000,000
Bids received$75,379,431,400
Sold$27,778,206,400
Competitive bids accepted$25,821,775,000
Non-competitive bids accepted$178,336,300
Federal Reserve (SOMA) add-on$1,778,095,100
Foreign and international (FIMA) non-competitive$0
High yield, %0.760
Median rate, %0.710
Low rate, %0.650
Interest rate (coupon), %0.750
Bids at the high rate filled, %80.11
Bid-to-cover ratio2.83
Indirect bidders accepted$11,831,165,000
Direct bidders accepted$6,498,400,000
Primary dealers accepted$7,492,210,000
Indirect bidders' share, % (ours)45.8
Direct bidders' share, % (ours)25.2
Primary dealers' share, % (ours)29.0
High minus median, basis points (ours)5.0
Treasury par yield curve, 2-year point, same day, %0.74
High yield minus that point, basis points (ours)2.0
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 ratio2.832.957 of 125 of 12
High yield0.7600.8016 of 125 of 12
Indirect bidders' share45.847.27 of 125 of 12
Direct bidders' share25.214.92 of 1210 of 12
Primary dealers' share29.036.610 of 122 of 12
High minus median, basis points5.03.60 of 1212 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 ratio2.83Last 24 auctions19 of 245 of 243.22
Bid-to-cover ratio2.83Since 23 April 200875 of 9520 of 953.23
Bid-to-cover ratio2.83All 194 since 27 October 199985 of 194109 of 1942.69
High yield0.760Last 24 auctions6 of 2417 of 240.600
High yield0.760Since 23 April 200833 of 9561 of 950.560
High yield0.760All 428 since 23 January 1980366 of 42861 of 4285.130
Indirect bidders' share45.8Last 24 auctions9 of 2415 of 2440.9
Indirect bidders' share45.8All 95 since 23 April 200814 of 9581 of 9534.3
Direct bidders' share25.2Last 24 auctions3 of 2421 of 2415.6
Direct bidders' share25.2All 95 since 23 April 200813 of 9582 of 9514.3
Primary dealers' share29.0Last 24 auctions22 of 242 of 2442.7
Primary dealers' share29.0All 95 since 23 April 200891 of 954 of 9551.1
High minus median, basis points5.0Last 24 auctions0 of 2424 of 242.6
High minus median, basis points5.0Since 23 April 20087 of 9585 of 952.4
High minus median, basis points5.0All 428 since 23 January 198018 of 428395 of 4282.0

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 23 August 2016. Results file: https://www.treasurydirect.gov/instit/annceresult/press/preanre/2016/R_20160823_2.pdf. Compiled by 500metrics, "2-year note auction of 23 August 2016 (new issue)", https://500metrics.com/treasury/auctions/2-year-note/2016-08-23.

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