U.S. Treasury Secretary Bessent downplayed concerns after Thursday’s Treasury buyback operation came in below expectations, saying the bond market is in “very good shape.” He pointed to strong performance in two recent Treasury auctions and reiterated that the correlation between bonds and energy prices has been unusually high. The Treasury had planned to buy back up to $6 billion in bonds, but Thursday’s actual total reached $5.19 billion. Bessent said the Treasury buys back bonds only “when they are cheap,” adding that sell offers totaled about $10 billion versus the usual $20 billion as bondholders appeared more willing to retain long-term securities. The two-year Treasury yield earlier reached its highest level since 2024, while the 10-year yield climbed to levels not seen since 2023, amid rising crude oil prices and the smaller-than-expected buyback.