Treasury Secretary Bessent Softens Bond Market Stance as Yields Hit 24-Year Highs

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has retreated from his combative posture toward bond traders after his efforts to talk yields down failed to gain traction, according to MarketWatch. Bessent had declared "I am the house now" in an interview last month, inviting bond-market bears to wager against him. Yields did not cooperate. He now says he "trusts the process" and that in bond markets "you win over time." U.S. Treasury yields have surged amid a global bond selloff, with the 10-year reaching 5.342% and the 30-year hitting 5.683% — their highest levels in 24 years. The move accelerated after President Donald Trump rejected Iran's ceasefire conditions, keeping the Strait of Hormuz closed and squeezing global energy supplies. The selloff has spotlighted the fiscal deficit trajectory, Treasury issuance pace, and term premium. "The 'higher for longer' rate environment has become 'much higher for a lot longer,'" said JoAnne Bianco, senior investment strategist at BondBloxx Investment Management.