why are treasury bills considered risk free 
treasury bills are issued by the united states department of the treasury you re effectively loaning money to the u s government when you purchase a treasury bill and the government pays you interest on that loan treasury bills are also referred to as t bills they re backed by the full faith and credit of the u s government 5the bottom linedefensive stocks provide stable consistent earnings and dividends they re less susceptible to factors that affect the rest of the stock market they re much less risky but gains aren t likely to be as substantial particularly during bull markets this isn t to say that you should avoid them entirely but you might want to talk to an investment advisor about balancing your portfolio with other stocks the comments opinions and analyses expressed on investopedia are for informational purposes online read our warranty and liability disclaimer for more info 