LONDON -U.S. government bond yields pushed to a near four-week peak on Wednesday, lifting their global counterparts and pressuring stocks, as data sowed new doubts about the timing and extent of Federal Reserve rate cuts.
The sharp improvement in a U.S. consumer confidence measure for May has kept the market guessing about the strength of the economy and sticky inflationary pressures, which in turn cloud the outlook for the Fed's policy path. Meanwhile, Japanese 10-year yields hit the highest since December 2011 at 1.081% on expectations that the Bank of Japan could soon raise interest rates again.
The dollar rose to a four-week peak of 157.4 yen on Wednesday, boosted by higher U.S. bond yields, before slipping back slightly. It was last flat against the euro at $1.0853.Oil prices gained more than $1 a barrel on Tuesday on the expectation that OPEC+ will maintain crude supply curbs at its June 2 meeting, while the start of U.S. summer driving season and Israel's assault on Rafah, next to the Egyptian border, has added to geopolitical tensions.