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Treasury auctions · 20-Year Bond

20-year bond auction of 20 November 2023 (new issue)

The 20-year bond sold $16.184 billion at a high yield of 4.780% on , with a bid-to-cover ratio of 2.58.

High yield at each 20-year bond auction

The last 36 auctions, this one last

High yield at each 20-year bond auction, 20 Jan 2021 to 20 Nov 2023
High yield at each 20-year bond auction, 2 Dec 2021 to 20 Nov 2023

Bid-to-cover ratio at each 20-year bond auction

The last 36 auctions, this one last

Bid-to-cover ratio at each 20-year bond auction, 20 Jan 2021 to 20 Nov 2023
Bid-to-cover ratio at each 20-year bond auction, 2 Dec 2021 to 20 Nov 2023

Who bought the 20-year bond of 20 Nov 2023

Shares of the competitive bids accepted

  • Indirect bidders 74.0%
  • Direct bidders 16.5%
  • Primary dealers 9.5%
This auction, 20 Nov 2023
  • Indirect bidders 72.9%
  • Direct bidders 15.2%
  • Primary dealers 11.9%
The 20-year bond auction before, 18 Oct 2023

Each point is one 20-year bond auction, this one last; pointing at the chart shows its date and figures.

Select a line to followLatest:

  • Indirect bidders74.0%
Inspect and compare dates
High yield and bid-to-cover of the last 36 20-year bond auctions, newest first
AuctionHigh yield, %Bid-to-cover
4.7802.58
5.2452.59
4.5922.74
4.4992.56
4.0362.68
4.0102.87
3.9542.56
3.9202.66
3.9092.53
3.9772.54
3.6782.83
3.9352.68
4.0722.64
4.3952.50
3.8202.65
3.3802.30
3.4202.65
3.4882.60
3.2902.50
3.0952.80
2.6512.72
2.3962.44
2.2102.48
1.9422.59
1.8722.92
2.0652.34
2.1002.25
1.7952.36
1.8502.44
1.8902.33
2.1202.40
2.2862.24
2.1442.42
2.2902.51
1.9202.15
1.6572.28

Observed .

Right now

The high yield was 4.780% on 20 November 2023, down from 5.245% at the auction before.

Higher than 42 of the 43 since 20 May 2020

Its own history

Against the previous 24 20-year bond auctions, the high yield was higher than 23 of the 24.

The high minus median was higher than 4 of them.

See every measure against earlier auctions

Who bought

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

  • Indirect bidders 74.0%
  • Direct bidders 16.5%
  • Primary dealers 9.5%

Size

Treasury sold $16.184 billion of the $16 billion offered.

Bids received came to $41.398 billion; the bid-to-cover ratio was 2.58.

Its bid-to-cover of 2.58 compares with the 24 auctions before it: lowest 2.30 on , highest 2.92 on ; 45.2% of the way from the low to the high.

2.58

Low 2.30 Midpoint 2.610 High 2.92

The security20-Year, new issue

Coupon
4.750%
Announced
Issued
Matures

It adds to the debt that matures in November 2043.

Understanding this result

Where it stands today

The high yield was 4.780% at this 20-year bond auction, the median yield 4.730% and a bid-to-cover ratio of 2.58.

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 (20-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 as20-Year, new issue
Offering amount$16,000,000,000
Bids received$41,398,294,800
Sold$16,184,316,400
Competitive bids accepted$15,831,222,900
Non-competitive bids accepted$168,798,900
Federal Reserve (SOMA) add-on$184,294,600
Foreign and international (FIMA) non-competitive$0
High yield, %4.780
Median rate, %4.730
Low rate, %4.680
Interest rate (coupon), %4.750
Bids at the high rate filled, %18.63
Bid-to-cover ratio2.58
Indirect bidders accepted$11,712,194,100
Direct bidders accepted$2,614,007,000
Primary dealers accepted$1,505,021,800
Indirect bidders' share, % (ours)74.0
Direct bidders' share, % (ours)16.5
Primary dealers' share, % (ours)9.5
High minus median, basis points (ours)5.0
Treasury par yield curve, 20-year point, same day, %4.74
High yield minus that point, basis points (ours)4.0
How does it compare with earlier auctions?The previous 12 auctions, then every window
Against the previous 12 auctions of the 20-year bond
MeasureThis auctionMedianHigherLower
Bid-to-cover ratio2.582.658 of 124 of 12
High yield4.7803.9941 of 1211 of 12
Indirect bidders' share74.071.44 of 128 of 12
Direct bidders' share16.518.69 of 123 of 12
Primary dealers' share9.59.46 of 126 of 12
High minus median, basis points5.07.011 of 121 of 12

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

The longer windows

Each measure against earlier 20-year bond auctions: how many were higher and lower, and their median
MeasureThis auctionWindowHigherLowerMedian
Bid-to-cover ratio2.58Last 24 auctions15 of 249 of 242.62
Bid-to-cover ratio2.58All 43 since 20 May 202016 of 4327 of 432.51
High yield4.780Last 24 auctions1 of 2423 of 243.864
High yield4.780All 43 since 20 May 20201 of 4342 of 432.290
Indirect bidders' share74.0Last 24 auctions7 of 2417 of 2468.7
Indirect bidders' share74.0All 43 since 20 May 20207 of 4336 of 4364.8
Direct bidders' share16.5Last 24 auctions17 of 247 of 2418.2
Direct bidders' share16.5All 43 since 20 May 202026 of 4317 of 4317.7
Primary dealers' share9.5Last 24 auctions15 of 249 of 2411.3
Primary dealers' share9.5All 43 since 20 May 202034 of 439 of 4316.4
High minus median, basis points5.0Last 24 auctions20 of 244 of 247.0
High minus median, basis points5.0All 43 since 20 May 202037 of 435 of 436.6

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 20 November 2023. Results file: https://www.treasurydirect.gov/instit/annceresult/press/preanre/2023/R_20231120_3.pdf. Compiled by 500metrics, "20-year bond auction of 20 November 2023 (new issue)", https://500metrics.com/treasury/auctions/20-year-bond/2023-11-20.

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