10-year TIPS available Thursday, April 12

10-year Treasury Inflation Protected Securities (TIPS) will be available to TreasuryDirect account holders who enter orders before Thursday, April 12. TreasuryDirect account holders have already entered orders for about $2 million worth of the securities.

This is a re-opening of the 10-year TIPS originally issued in January, so the actual term is 9 years and and 9 months. In January the TIPS were issued with a 2-3/8% interest rate, which the new bonds will also pay. Since the 10-year TIPS rate is now about 2-1/4%, these TIPS will cost a bit more than their eventual redemption value of $1,000 - plus inflation adjustments - each.

TreasuryDirect investors won't know the exact price they will pay until the results of the auction of these securities to large institutions is complete. All investors, large and small, will pay the same price for the bonds, which will be the lowest successful price bid in the auction.