Rates On 3-Month T-Bills Hit Highest Level Since 2008 Crisis

WASHINGTON (AP) — Interest rates on short-term Treasury bills rose in Monday's auction with rates on three-month bills rising to their highest level since the 2008 financial crisis.

         The Treasury Department auctioned $37 billion in three-month bills at a discount rate of 0.350 percent, up from 0.305 percent last week. Another $30 billion in six-month bills was auctioned at a discount rate of 0.465 percent, up from 0.415 percent last week.

         The three-month rate was the highest since those bills averaged 0.355 percent on Nov. 10, 2008. The six-month rate was the highest since those bills averaged 0.470 percent on Jan. 11.

         The discount rates reflect that the bills sell for less than face value. For a $10,000 bill, the three-month price was $9,991.15, while a six-month bill sold for $9,976 .49. That would equal an annualized rate of 0.356 percent for the three-month bills and 0.474 percent for the six-month bills.

         Separately, the Federal Reserve said Monday that the average yield for one-year Treasury bills, a popular index for making changes in adjustable rate mortgages, edged up to 0.47 percent last week from 0.46 percent the previous week.