FINANCIAL MARKETS : CREDIT : Tail-Off in Stocks Nudges Bonds Up

Government bond prices rose marginally Friday in sluggish trading due to a last-minute drop in the stock markets.

The Treasury’s benchmark 30-year bond rose 1/8 point, or $1.25 per $1,000 face amount. Its yield, which moves in the opposite direction, fell to 8.47% from 8.49% late Thursday.

The federal funds rate, the interest rate that banks charge each other on overnight loans, was 8.188%, unchanged from late Wednesday.

In the tax-exempt market, the Bond Buyer index of 40 actively traded municipal bonds remained at 91 5/16 point. The average yield to maturity also was unchanged, at 7.54%.

CURRENCY

Dollar Is Mixed in Slow N.Y. Trading

The dollar was mixed against most major currencies in slow trading Friday.

It rose in New York to 1.1785 against the Canadian dollar, compared to 1.1758 late Thursday.

Other late dollar rates in New York, compared to late Thursday, included: 1.4110 Swiss francs, down from 1.4135; 5.6215 French francs, down from 5.6265; 1,226.75 Italian lire, down from 1,228.25, and 1.6740 German marks, down from 1.6795.

COMMODITIES

Pork Futures Sink; Energy Issues Gain Frozen pork belly futures fell the permitted daily limit of 2 cents a pound for the fifth time in seven trading sessions on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange.

Frozen pork bellies settled 0.95 cent to 2 cents lower, with the contract for delivery in July at 59.40 cents a pound.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil settled 25 cents to 52 cents higher, with August at $17.46 a barrel. Heating oil was 0.75 to 0.99 cent higher, with July at 48.66 cents a gallon.

Tables begin on D5.