Treasury yields came off session highs on Tuesday after Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell blocked an attempt by Democrats to increase direct stimulus payments to $2,000.
The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note last traded flat at 0.936%, while the yield on the 30-year Treasury bond was slightly higher at 1.675%. Yields move inversely to prices.
The Kentucky Republican objected to a motion by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer to approve the bill that passed the House on Monday. The move came despite the face that President Trump has pushed for larger stimulus checks after threatening to veto the year-end coronavirus relief and government funding legislation.
Trump signed a $900 billion Covid-19 relief bill into law on Sunday, while the Treasury Department has said the $600 payments will start going out as soon as this week.
Meanwhile, the Federal Reserve announced Tuesday that its lending program for smaller businesses will be extended by a week and now will close Jan. 8. The program was instituted to help businesses with fewer than 15,000 employees access funding.
On the data front, U.S. home prices rose in October by the most in more than six years, according to the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller 20-city home price index.
The U.S. Treasury will auction $59 billion of 7-year notes, $34 billion of 52-week bills, $30 billion of 119-day bills and $30 billion of 42-day bills.
