Treasury on Floating Notes
The Treasury published its latest "Treasury Assistant Secretary for Financial Markets Matthew Rutherford May 2013 Quarterly Refunding Statement ", which says, "Treasury expects to keep note and bond auction sizes stable in the coming quarter. Treasury believes that the current coupon issuance schedule and offering sizes for notes and bonds are adequate to address forecasted borrowing needs over the near term. As is typical after the April tax season, borrowing needs have declined. Treasury addressed this seasonal reduction in borrowing needs by reducing weekly bill issuance starting in late April. We anticipate that this seasonal decline in borrowing needs will last through the remainder of the third fiscal quarter. Depending on how the fiscal situation develops, Treasury may decide to gradually decrease coupon auction sizes. Treasury will continue to provide guidance to market participants regarding any changes in the fiscal outlook that might impact the government's financing needs." on "Floating Rate Notes (FRNs)," they write, "At the August 2012 Quarterly Refunding, Treasury announced plans to develop a floating rate note (FRN) program to complement our existing suite of securities and to help achieve our objective of financing the government at the lowest cost over time. Treasury has reviewed the comment letters that were received in response to the Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPR) published on December 5, 2012. We have decided to use the weekly High Rate of 13-week Treasury bill auctions, which was described in the ANPR, as the index for Treasury FRNs. More broadly, we plan to issue a final rule on floating rate notes in the coming months, with the first FRN auction estimated to occur in either Q4 2013 or Q1 2014. This timeframe reflects Treasury's best estimate for implementing required auction regulations and IT systems modifications. Treasury will provide additional information regarding the timing of the first auction at the August refunding." Note that the Treasury's Matthew Rutherford is scheduled to speak at the upcoming (June 19-21) Crane's Money Fund Symposium.
