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Treasury auctions · 5-Year Note

5-year note auction of 24 March 2021 (new issue)

The 5-year note sold $71.954 billion at a high yield of 0.850% on , with a bid-to-cover ratio of 2.36.

High yield at each 5-year note auction

The last 36 auctions, this one last

High yield at each 5-year note auction, 21 Feb 2018 to 24 Mar 2021
High yield at each 5-year note auction, 24 Apr 2019 to 24 Mar 2021

Bid-to-cover ratio at each 5-year note auction

The last 36 auctions, this one last

Bid-to-cover ratio at each 5-year note auction, 21 Feb 2018 to 24 Mar 2021
Bid-to-cover ratio at each 5-year note auction, 24 Apr 2019 to 24 Mar 2021

Who bought the 5-year note of 24 Mar 2021

Shares of the competitive bids accepted

  • Indirect bidders 58.1%
  • Direct bidders 16.6%
  • Primary dealers 25.3%
This auction, 24 Mar 2021
  • Indirect bidders 57.1%
  • Direct bidders 14.4%
  • Primary dealers 28.6%
The 5-year note auction before, 24 Feb 2021

Each point is one 5-year note auction, this one last; pointing at the chart shows its date and figures.

Select a line to followLatest:

  • Indirect bidders58.1%
Inspect and compare dates
High yield and bid-to-cover of the last 36 5-year note auctions, newest first
AuctionHigh yield, %Bid-to-cover
0.8502.36
0.6212.24
0.4242.34
0.3942.39
0.3972.38
0.3302.38
0.2752.52
0.2982.71
0.2882.32
0.3302.58
0.3342.28
0.3942.74
0.5352.53
1.1502.46
1.4482.33
1.7562.49
1.5872.50
1.5702.41
1.6002.32
1.3652.48
1.8242.26
1.7912.35
2.3152.44
2.4892.40
2.5762.41
2.6522.09
2.8802.49
2.9772.30
2.9972.39
2.7652.49
2.8152.61
2.7192.55
2.8642.52
2.8372.49
2.6122.50
2.6582.44

Observed .

Right now

The high yield of 0.850% on 24 March 2021 was the highest for a 5-year note since 26 February 2020.

The high minus median of 6.0 basis points was the highest for a 5-year note since 25 September 2019, with 17 auctions in between.

Higher than 28 of the 155 since 24 April 2008

Its own history

Against the previous 24 5-year note auctions, the high minus median was higher than 23 of the 24.

The indirect bidders' share was higher than 8 of them.

See every measure against earlier auctions

Who bought

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

  • Indirect bidders 58.1%
  • Direct bidders 16.6%
  • Primary dealers 25.3%

Size

Treasury sold $71.954 billion of the $61 billion offered.

Bids received came to $154.998 billion; the bid-to-cover ratio was 2.36.

Its bid-to-cover of 2.36 compares with the 24 auctions before it: lowest 2.24 on , highest 2.74 on ; 24.0% of the way from the low to the high.

2.36

Low 2.24 Midpoint 2.490 High 2.74

The security5-Year, new issue

Coupon
0.750%
Announced
Issued
Matures

It adds to the debt that matures in March 2026.

Understanding this result

Where it stands today

The high yield was 0.850% at this 5-year note auction, the median yield 0.790% and a bid-to-cover ratio of 2.36.

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 (5-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 as5-Year, new issue
Offering amount$61,000,000,000
Bids received$154,998,181,700
Sold$71,953,839,200
Competitive bids accepted$60,945,407,500
Non-competitive bids accepted$47,393,300
Federal Reserve (SOMA) add-on$10,953,838,400
Foreign and international (FIMA) non-competitive$7,200,000
High yield, %0.850
Median rate, %0.790
Low rate, %0.736
Interest rate (coupon), %0.750
Bids at the high rate filled, %64.83
Bid-to-cover ratio2.36
Indirect bidders accepted$35,395,410,000
Direct bidders accepted$10,127,000,000
Primary dealers accepted$15,422,997,500
Indirect bidders' share, % (ours)58.1
Direct bidders' share, % (ours)16.6
Primary dealers' share, % (ours)25.3
High minus median, basis points (ours)6.0
Treasury par yield curve, 5-year point, same day, %0.83
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 5-year note
MeasureThis auctionMedianHigherLower
Bid-to-cover ratio2.362.388 of 124 of 12
High yield0.8500.3640 of 1212 of 12
Indirect bidders' share58.159.37 of 125 of 12
Direct bidders' share16.614.43 of 129 of 12
Primary dealers' share25.325.16 of 126 of 12
High minus median, basis points6.04.60 of 1212 of 12

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

The longer windows

Each measure against earlier 5-year note auctions: how many were higher and lower, and their median
MeasureThis auctionWindowHigherLowerMedian
Bid-to-cover ratio2.36Last 24 auctions16 of 248 of 242.40
Bid-to-cover ratio2.36Since 24 April 2008124 of 15530 of 1552.54
Bid-to-cover ratio2.36All 232 since 28 September 1994159 of 23272 of 2322.49
High yield0.850Last 24 auctions12 of 2412 of 240.886
High yield0.850Since 24 April 2008127 of 15528 of 1551.596
High yield0.850All 328 since 24 January 1991300 of 32828 of 3283.225
Indirect bidders' share58.1Last 24 auctions16 of 248 of 2460.1
Indirect bidders' share58.1All 155 since 24 April 200852 of 155103 of 15552.7
Direct bidders' share16.6Last 24 auctions6 of 2418 of 2414.4
Direct bidders' share16.6All 155 since 24 April 200814 of 155141 of 15510.3
Primary dealers' share25.3Last 24 auctions10 of 2414 of 2424.3
Primary dealers' share25.3All 155 since 24 April 2008130 of 15525 of 15537.8
High minus median, basis points6.0Last 24 auctions0 of 2423 of 244.4
High minus median, basis points6.0Since 24 April 200825 of 155126 of 1554.4
High minus median, basis points6.0All 328 since 24 January 199126 of 328296 of 3283.3

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 24 March 2021. Results file: https://www.treasurydirect.gov/instit/annceresult/press/preanre/2021/R_20210324_3.pdf. Compiled by 500metrics, "5-year note auction of 24 March 2021 (new issue)", https://500metrics.com/treasury/auctions/5-year-note/2021-03-24.

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