The bond market is driving the Trump administration crazy. Last week, the treasury secretary, Scott Bessent, announced that the government would sharply ramp up its purchase of treasury bonds, in an effort to raise their price and thus push down their yield, which amounts to the interest rate the government pays on its debt.(上周，财政部长斯科特·贝森特宣布，政府将大幅增加国债购买，以期抬高价格、压低收益率，收益率即政府债务的利率。)
债券市场正让特朗普政府抓狂。上周，财政部长斯科特·贝森特宣布，政府将大幅增加国债购买，以期抬高国债价格，从而压低其收益率——收益率即政府为其债务支付的利率。
It didn’t quite work as planned. Yields on treasurys fell after Bessent’s bond market intervention(干预、介入) but soon bounced back. By Friday afternoon, the yield on the 10-year treasury was back near where it was before the secretary’s announcement. The yield on the 30-year bond was again trading around its highest level in 20 years or more.
事情并未完全按计划发展。贝森特干预债券市场后，国债收益率一度下降，但很快反弹。到周五下午，10年期国债收益率已回升至部长宣布前的水平附近。30年期国债收益率则再次徘徊在20多年来的最高水平附近。
Bessent’s desperation(绝望、孤注一掷) is hardly surprising. The rise in treasury yields since the upsurge(急剧上升、激增) in inflation in 2022 has sharply increased the cost of servicing(偿还（债务）利息) the federal debt, which has balloon(急剧膨胀、激增)ed to a record $40tn. This year interest payments will absorb(吸收、占用) 13.5% of all federal spending, more than defense and up from 5.2% in 2021.
贝森特的绝望并不令人意外。自2022年通胀飙升以来，国债收益率上升，大幅增加了联邦债务的偿还成本，而联邦债务已膨胀至创纪录的40万亿美元。今年，利息支出将占联邦总开支的13.5%，超过国防开支，而2021年这一比例仅为5.2%。