TREASURIES-Long-dated prices slip; jobless data boosts risk appetite

* U.S. weekly jobless claims unexpectedly fall
* Stocks' strength undermines demand for lower-risk U.S.
debt
* Treasury $13 billion 30-year bond sale gets weak reception

By Chris Reese
NEW YORK, March 14 (Reuters) - Long-dated U.S. Treasuries
prices slipped slightly on Thursday after improved labor market
data and stock market gains undermined the appeal of lower-risk
government debt.
After strong demand emerged for a 10-year Treasury note
auction on Wednesday, the reception for the 30-year bonds the
Treasury sold on Thursday was lackluster.
"The 30-year refunding auction didn't go well," said John
Canavan, market analyst at Stone & McCarthy Research Associates
in Princeton, New Jersey. "The indirect bid was unusually
strong, but the direct bid fell off a cliff."
Direct bidders accounted for only 4.87 percent of the
purchases, the smallest share since September 2009.
The drop in direct participation was mitigated by a rise in
central banks and other indirect bidders which bought 41.97
percent of the offering, the biggest share in four months.

The $13 billion in an older 30-year bond issue
was sold at a yield of 3.248 percent, the
highest level in a year.
Bonds briefly widened losses after Treasury released the
auction results.
Treasury debt yields began the session trading higher in
tandem with Spanish bond yields after an auction of longer-term
Spanish debt met healthy demand.
Price declines were extended after data showing the number
of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits
unexpectedly fell last week, marking the third straight week of
declines.
Benchmark 10-year Treasury notes were trading
with a yield of 2.02 percent. Thirty-year bond
yields stood at 3.22 percent, unchanged from late Wednesday.
When it comes to the economy, "everything is just less bad,"
said Ellis Phifer, senior market analyst at Raymond James in
Memphis, Tennessee. He expects the 10-year note yield to touch
2.15 percent if the stock market continues its winning streak.
The Treasuries market on Thursday largely shrugged off data
showing U.S. producer prices in February rose by the most in
five months as gasoline prices spiked. Overall, the report
showed little sign of a broader increase in inflation pressures.
The Labor Department said its seasonally adjusted producer
price index increased 0.7 percent last month after advancing 0.2
percent in January.