Global bond selloff accelerates: 30-year Treasury yield at 5.11%, highest since May 2025
Government bond markets collapsed across the globe on May 15 as investors fled duration amid surging inflation expectations tied to Iranian tensions and elevated oil prices. The 30-year U.S. Treasury yield hit 5.11%, the highest since May 2025, while yields in Europe and Asia also surged, pressuring risk assets and widening credit spreads as equities took flight.
RKey facts
- 30-year U.S. Treasury yield hit 5.11%, highest since May 2025
- Global bond selloff driven by Iran tensions and elevated oil prices
- British pound recorded worst week since 2024 vs. USD
- Nasdaq down 1.3%, Russell 2000 up 0.7% as rotation accelerates
- JPMorgan flagged 'bond vigilantes are back,' signaling re-pricing of inflationThe rate at which prices rise across an economy. risk
What's happening
Bond markets are experiencing their most severe selloff in months, driven by a toxic combination of geopolitical risk, energy supply disruption, and deteriorating inflationThe rate at which prices rise across an economy. expectations. The Iran-Israel conflict has snarled global crude shipments and caused crude prices to spike, triggering a cascade of margin calls and forced selling in rate-sensitive assets. From Japan to the U.S., investors abandoned sovereign debt, with benchmark yields jumping to multi-year highs.
The 30-year U.S. Treasury yield breached 5.11%, the highest level since May 2025, signaling that bond investors no longer believe the Federal Reserve will cut rates soon or that inflationThe rate at which prices rise across an economy. will cool materially. The British pound fell to its worst week since 2024 against the dollar as the UK gilt market suffered outsized losses. European government bonds, traditionally considered safe havens, posted steep declines. JPMorgan strategists flagged that 'bond vigilantes are back,' meaning that investors are now scrutinizing government finances and inflation dynamics rather than passively buying on dips.
The selloff has cascading effects on equity valuations. Rising yields compress price-to-earnings multiples, making mega-cap tech stocks, which had anchored the rally since early May, suddenly less attractive on a relative basis. By Friday's close, the Nasdaq was down 1.3% while the Russell 2000 gained 0.7%, signaling a violent rotation away from rate-sensitive growth and toward value and defensive names. Credit spreads widened as investors demanded higher compensation for corporate debt risk; bank equity traders noted that private credit deals, which boomed under low-rate assumptions, now face tougher underwriting dynamics.
The question for markets is whether the selloff is a healthy reset or the start of a deeper re-pricing. Some analysts, including those at SocGen and RBC, are warning that if yields push past 5% sustainably, the bull case for equities, especially for expensive mega-cap growth stocks that have dominated since January, begins to crack. Conversely, value investors and income traders see opportunity; 30-year bonds trading at 5%+ yields are increasingly competitive with equities on a forward basis. What happens next hinges on whether oil prices stabilize, whether geopolitical tensions ease, and whether the incoming Fed Chair Kevin Warsh signals patience or hawkishness on rates.
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