The U.S. Treasury Department plans to issue its first benchmark 6-week Treasury bill as part of a transition from its regular issuance of 6-week cash management bills. The announcement for the auction will be made shortly, with the new benchmark bills maintaining a consistent settlement and maturity cycle.
The Treasury has highlighted that until the debt ceiling is suspended or raised, there will be significant volatility in the issuance of benchmark Treasury bills, along with extensive use of cash management bills. This reflects the constraints imposed by the debt limit.
In a previous refinancing plan, the Treasury announced its intention to transform the regular 6-week cash management bills into a benchmark product, integrating it into the regular issuance schedule. Discussions on expanding Treasury bill issuance have been ongoing since 2020.
Notably, the Treasury had ceased issuing 6-week cash management bills in August 2021. However, following the suspension of the U.S. government debt limit, the Treasury resumed large-scale Treasury bill issuance in June 2023.
