Economic indicators

The Treasury Department Tuesday auctioned $20 billion of 364-day bills at a 1.145% high yield, a price of 98.842278.

The Treasury Department Tuesday auctioned $55 billion of four-week bills at a 0.735% high yield, a price of 99.924833.

The pace of new single-family home sales dropped to a lower-than-expected 569,000 seasonally adjusted annual rate in April from March's near 10-year high, but followed upward revisions to the sales pace in each of the previous three months, data released by the Commerce Department Tuesday showed.

Tender rates for the Treasury Department's latest 91-day and 182-day discount bills were higher, as the three-months incurred a 0.920% high rate, up from 0.905% the prior week, and the six-months incurred a 1.050% high rate, up from 1.020% the week before.

The Treasury Department said Monday it will sell $55 billion of four-week discount bills Tuesday.

The Treasury Department sold $11 billion of inflation-indexed 9-year, 8-month TIPs at a 0.420% high yield, an adjusted price of 100.496978, with a 3/8% coupon.

The composite index of Leading Economic Indicators was up 0.3% in April following a revised 0.3% increase in March, first reported as a 0.4% gain, the Conference Board reported Thursday.

The region's manufacturing sector expanded in May, but at a faster pace than in April, as the general business conditions index increased to 38.8 from 22.0 in April, this month's Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia Report on Business indicates.

Initial claims for U.S. state unemployment benefits fell by 4,000 to 232,000 in the May 13 employment survey week, below the 240,000 level analysts expected, data released by the Labor Department Thursday showed.

Industrial production grew 1.0% in April, the Federal Reserve reported Tuesday.

The pace of housing starts fell by 2.6% to a 1.172 million seasonally adjusted annual rate in April, well below expectations for a rebound to a 1.260 million pace, data reported by the Commerce Department Tuesday morning showed.

The New York region's service sector activity "expanded modestly," according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York's May Business Leaders Survey, released Tuesday.

Builders’ confidence in the market for new single-family homes climbed as the National Association of Home Builders' housing market index grew to 70 in May from 68 in April.

The Empire State Manufacturing Survey showed "business activity leveled off in New York State," the Federal Reserve Bank of New York reported Monday, as the general business conditions index decreased to negative 1.0 in May from positive 5.2 in April.

Analysts expect growth over the next four quarters to be "slightly stronger now" compared to their view three months ago, while the unemployment outlook is also "brighter," a survey of professional forecasters by the Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank showed Friday.

The value of business inventories rose 0.2% in March, stronger than the 0.1% gain expected, while sales were flat, a Commerce Department report Friday showed.

The University of Michigan's preliminary May consumer sentiment index reading was 97.7, compared to the final April 97.0, and the preliminary April 98.0, according to market sources.

April retail sales did not quite meet expectations Friday, rising 0.4%, with March upgraded to a positive in revision.

The consumer price index rose 0.2% in April as expected, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. It had declined 0.3% in March.

The Treasury Department Tuesday auctioned $15 billion of 30-year bonds with a 3% coupon at a 3.050% high yield, a price of 99.021791.