treasury yield is the effective annual interest rate that the u s government pays on one of its debt obligations expressed as a percentage put another way treasury yield is the annual return investors can expect from holding a u s government security with a given maturity 
treasury yields don t just affect how much the government pays to borrow and how much investors earn by buying government bonds they also influence the interest rates consumers and businesses pay on loans to buy real estate vehicles and equipment treasury yields also show how investors assess the economy s prospects the higher the yields on long term u s treasuries the more confidence investors have in the economic outlook but high long term yields can also be a sign of rising inflation expectations investopedia michela buttignolunderstanding the treasury yield