TLT

Benzinga and Yahoo Finance LLC may earn commission or revenue on some items through the links below. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is facing a brutal verdict on his attempt to tame long-term yields: it won’t work, according to a former senior Treasury official, because America’s fiscal position is “absolutely out of control.” Nathan Sheets, global chief economist at Citigroup, is a former Treasury undersecretary for international affairs and an 18-year Federal Reserve veteran. Asked in an interview with CNBC whether billionaire investor Stanley Druckenmiller was right that Bessent is managing prices rather than supporting liquidity, Sheets said: “Broadly speaking, I think the answer to that question is yes.” The generous reading, he said, is that Treasury is worried about financial stability at the long end of the curve. The less generous one is that Bessent simply wants yields lower. Treasury said Aug. 19 it would at least double long-end buybacks to $4 billion per operation after the 30-year yield hit a 19-year high. Bessent later said purchases could grow further, while officials floated funding them through the $940 billion Treasury General Account. Treasury calls the move liquidity support, arguing that thin August trading pushed yields above economic fundamentals. But the relief lasted barely a day: yields initially fell, then reversed. The planned purchases are tiny beside a cash market trading $1.2 trillion daily and Treasury’s expected $739 billion in quarterly borrowing. The verdict lands one day after Druckenmiller slammed the plan in a Wall Street Journal op-ed. The billionaire mentored Bessent at Soros Fund Management, and Bessent told the Financial Times last year that “in macro, there’s Stan and then everybody else.” Now Druckenmiller warns that suppressing yields rewards fiscal procrastination. If the 30-year must trade at 5.5% to clear, he wrote, “that isn’t a crisis. It is an invoice.” Sheets said deficits of 6% of GDP or higher imply $20 trillion to $25 trillion of Treasury issuance over the coming decade. Washington wants to spend around 24% of GDP while taxing at 17% to 18%, he said, and buybacks do nothing to close that gap. “My baseline would be it doesn’t work, but it’s benign,” Sheets said. In a worse scenario, he warned, the effort starts to undercut the credibility of the Treasury, the administration and ultimately the Federal Reserve. Kalshi traders see a 56% chance the 10-year yield ends 2026 at 4.75% or above. A year-end yield of at least 5% is priced at 27%. The iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF (NASDAQ:TLT) traded near $83 Tuesday, just over 2% above its 52-week low of $81.17. The fund touched its lowest closing level since 2004 last week. Bessent can buy back bonds. His critics’ message is that he cannot buy back fiscal credibility. Image: Shutterstock Kalshi and Benzinga have an existing data collaboration agreement. This article Scott Bessent's Bond Plan 'Won't Work,' Citi Economist Says: US Fiscal Position Is 'Absolutely Out of Control' originally appeared on Benzinga.com © 2026 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.

Oil prices climbed above $100 a barrel amid growing conflict in the Middle East. U.S. President Donald Trump threatened “major military punishment” for Iran amid the escalating tensions. “Magnificent Seven” stocks were in the red at close on Thursday, and the Roundhill Magnificent Seven ETF (MAGS) fell 4.6% amid the selloff. U.S. stock futures traded higher overnight on Thursday, as markets looked past renewed U.S. military action in Iran and rising oil prices, instead turning their focus to hyperscaler earnings amid growing scrutiny of AI spending. Nasdaq-100 futures gained 0.14%, Dow futures were up 0.08%, and S&P 500 futures rose 0.12% at 9:20 PM EDT. Among ETFs tracking benchmark indexes, the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY), the Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ), and the SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust (DIA) all edged higher at the time of writing. See what 10M+ investors are talking about. Get the Stocktwits Daily Rip for what retail is watching right now, free to your inbox The iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF (TLT) was also up 0.02% amid ‘bearish’ sentiment. U.S. stock markets ended lower on Thursday as growing conflict in the Middle East pushed Brent crude prices above $100 a barrel for the first time since May. The Nasdaq Composite led the decline, shedding more than 550 points to close 2.15% lower. The S&P 500 fell 1.21%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 0.97% at close. Markets were primarily focused on earnings from major companies, alongside rising oil prices due to the continued tensions between the U.S. and Iran. Intel Corp. (INTC) gained more than 4% overnight on Thursday after delivering better-than-expected second-quarter (Q2) results and forecasting strong sales for the third quarter, boosting confidence in AI-related infrastructure spending. However, Alphabet Inc.’s (GOOG, GOOGL) ballooning capex spending attracted multiple Wall Street price target cuts, pressuring the company and sending its shares about 7% lower at close. Tesla Inc. (TSLA) shares also sank more than 14% amid Wall Street’s lowered targets. Other “Magnificent Seven” stocks were also in the red at close on Thursday. The Roundhill Magnificent Seven ETF (MAGS) fell 4.6% at close amid the selloff. “The real problem is the amount of spend that’s going on,” Ken Mahoney, chief executive officer of Mahoney Asset Management, told Bloomberg, adding that “No one knows what the return on investment is.” Markets are now awaiting results from Microsoft Corp. (MSFT), Meta Platforms Inc. (META), Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN) and Apple Inc. (AAPL), expected next week. Meanwhile, climbing oil prices added to the pressure after Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi militants claimed attacks on two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea, stoking fears of a broader Middle East conflict. U.S. President Donald Trump threatened “major military punishment” for Iran amid the escalating tensions. “A year ago the United States of America attacked, very powerfully, the Houthis, for their interference with commerce and trade, by shooting at ships. Since that time, and during our conflict with Iran, they have acted very responsibly. Unfortunately, now they are starting up again, shooting at two Saudi Arabian ships last night. Please let this TRUTH serve to represent that if they do this again, the U.S. will hold Iran responsible, in that the Houthis are a Surrogate and/or Proxy of Iran, and major military punishment will be inflicted upon Iran and, of course, the Houthis, themselves,” he said in a post on Truth Social. The U.S. Central Command confirmed a 13th consecutive night of attacks on Iran in a post on X, adding that it “aimed to hold Iran accountable and diminish threats from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps to commercial shipping.” Later on Thursday, according to a report from Axios, Trump said that he is considering a “massive attack” on Iran that would be “bigger than ever before.” He added that he was “close to making a decision” and that they are “all set for it.” Mohamed El-Erian, chief economic adviser at Allianz, noted in a post on X, “It’s one of those market days where the vast majority of asset classes are down, including stocks, bonds, crypto, and gold. The blame game points to the one asset class that is notably higher today: energy. And for good reason—$100 Brent crude complicates the economic, corporate, and policy outlooks.” He added that markets should look “Beyond the obvious,” and “keep a close eye on debt and leverage dynamics.” Intel Corp. (INTC): The chipmaker was on the retail radar after its shares jumped overnight following strong Q2 results. The company also forecast strong third-quarter (Q3) revenue of $15.8 billion to $16.8 billion, considerably higher than Wall Street expectations. Tesla Inc. (TSLA): The EV-maker was on the retail radar after it posted Q2 results on Wednesday that failed to impress investors. Shares dropped more than 14% at close amid a series of Wall Street price target cuts and continued concerns over its blowout capex plans. Trade Desk Inc. (TTD): The stock attracted retail attention after its shares fell to a 52-week low of $16.70 as concerns over its growth amid rising competition continued to weigh on investor sentiment. Hims & Hers Health Inc. (HIMS): The telehealth company closed up more than 3% on Thursday and continued to climb overnight following a positive FDA advisory committee vote recommending wider access to the BPC-157 peptide. While crude oil prices declined marginally late Thursday, Brent crude futures expiring in September continued to trade above $100 a barrel. Meanwhile, WTI crude futures expiring in September were trading at $91.54 per barrel. Yields on the 10-year Treasury jumped to trade at 4.702%, the highest in over a year. Meanwhile, spot gold prices were at $4,043.45 per ounce. “Once again, traders are getting spooked by the rise in bond yields. But the breakdown in bonds is actually bullish for gold, as it reflects soaring federal budget deficits, out-of-control inflation, and a loss of confidence in the creditworthiness of the U.S. Buy the dip!” economist Peter Schiff said in a post on X. Asian markets were trading lower at the open on Friday. South Korea's KOSPI, Japan’s Nikkei 225, China’s SSE Composite and Australian stocks were all in the red at the time of writing. For updates and corrections, email newsroom[at]stocktwits[dot]com. Aashika Suresh has no position in any of the stocks mentioned in this article. StockTwits' news team content is for informational purposes only and is not intended as investment advice. For more, see our editorial policy. This article was originally published on StockTwits. Related: Nokia's Massive AI Orders Overshadow Soft Guidance — BofA Sees 90% Upside Alphabet And Tesla's Blowout Capex Plans Are Shifting Investor Perceptions And Valuation Metrics CAPR Stock On Track To Clock Weekly Gains Ahead Of Critical FDA Panel — Retail Deems It A ‘Binary Event’