UK gilts slump in muted trading session ahead of 10-year auction

The United Kingdom’s gilts slumped during European trading hours Tuesday amid a muted trading session that witnessed data of little economic significance ahead of a host of 2-tier economic data due for release through this week.

The yield on the benchmark 10-year gilts, jumped 3-1/2 basis points to 0.806 percent, the 30-year yield gained 1-1/2 basis points to 1.257 percent and the yield on the short-term 2-year gained nearly 2 basis points to 0.613 percent by 10:00GMT.

In the bond markets, while some local headlines of Iranian sabre-rattling (suggestions of ‘thirteen retaliation scenarios’ and a ‘historic nightmare’ for the US) have given some support in the past half hour, USTs are still little changed from yesterday’s US close (10-year yields a little less than 1.80 percent), Daiwa Capital Markets reported.

European government bonds have also opened a touch weaker ahead of this morning’s flash euro area inflation data, which are bound to report a jump at the end of last year. After last week’s significant downside surprise in the equivalent manufacturing survey, however, today’s principal data focus will be the US non-manufacturing ISM report, which are expected to report a pickup in December, the report added.

Meanwhile, the FTSE 100 remained nearly flat at 7,581.05 by 10:05GMT.