Short-term interest rates on Treasury bills unchanged

WASHINGTON - Interest rates on short-term Treasury bills held steady in Monday's auction, with rates on three-month bills remaining at the highest level since early July and six-month bills continuing at the lowest level since mid-June.

The Treasury Department auctioned $30 billion in three-month bills at a discount rate of 0.155 percent, unchanged from last week. Another $30 billion was auctioned in six-month bills at a discount rate of 0.185 percent, also unchanged.

The three-month rate was the highest since three-month bills averaged 0.165 percent on July 6. The six-month rate was the lowest since those bills averaged 0.170 percent on June 21.

The discount rates reflect that the bills sell for less than face value. For a $10,000 bill, the three-month price was $9,996.04 while a six-month bill sold for $9,990.65. That would equal an annualized rate of 0.157 percent for the three-month bills and 0.188 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, was unchanged at 0.25 percent last week.