3-Month, 6-Month T-Bill Rates Rise

Interest rates on short-term Treasury securities rose in the latest auction.

The Treasury Department sold $15 billion in three-month bills at a discount rate of 1.715%, up from 1.670% last week. An additional $14 billion was sold in six-month bills at a rate of 1.830%, up from 1.735%.

Both the three-month and six-month rates were the highest since Dec. 26 when the bills sold for 1.720% and 1.850%, respectively.

The new discount rates understate the actual return to investors--1.748% for three-month bills with a $10,000 bill selling for $9,956.60 and 1.872% for a six-month bill selling for $9,907.50.

In a separate report, the Federal Reserve said that the average yield for one-year constant maturity Treasury bills, the most popular index for making changes in adjustable rate mortgages, rose to 2.18% last week from 2.03% the previous week.