Volatility in the ordinarily sedate world of bonds climbed this week to one of the highest levels since the 2007-2009 financial crisis and recession.
Tuesday’s action in the MOVE index was accompanied by an aggressive selloff in U.S. Treasurys, which pushed the 10-year TMUBMUSD10Y, 3.723% and 30-year TMUBMUSD30Y, 3.681% rates to their highest levels since April 6, 2010, and Jan. 9, 2014, respectively. “Clearly, the U.K. bond market was getting disorderly and you don’t do limited quantitative easing — when inflation is running as high as it is — unless something is in the process of breaking. To me, it’s the U.K. bond market that is one of the things that’s breaking,” said Mark Heppenstall, chief investment officer of Penn Mutual Asset Management, which manages more than $31 billion from Horsham, Pa.