JGBs rise after strong auction for 10-year bonds

TOKYO, July 1 (Reuters) - Japanese government bonds rose following strong demand at an auction for 10-year bonds, prompting investors to cover short positions.

The 10-year JGB yield JP10YTN=JBTC fell 4 basis points (bps) to 1.39% after the auction outcome was announced.

Bond yields move inversely to prices.

The bid-to-cover ratio was 3.51 times the amount sold, lower than the 3.66 ratio at the previous auction, the finance ministry's data showed.

But the lowest accepted price was higher than the market forecast, signalling a robust outcome, strategists said.

"The strong outcome was a surprise and the market covered short positions they made ahead of the auction," said Tomoaki Shishido, senior rates strategist at Nomura Securities.

There seemed to be a significant number of institutions that bought the bonds directly from the ministry, said Katsutoshi Inadome, senior strategist at Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Asset Management.

"Such institutions typically hold the bonds for the long term. They wanted to do so because prospects for the Bank of Japan's rate hike are weak," Inadome said.

The 20-year JGB yield JP20YTN=JBTC fell 3 bps to 2.32%. The 30-year JGB yield JP30YTN=JBTC fell 0.5 bp to 2.905%.

The two-year JGB yield JP2YTN=JBTC fell 1 bp to 0.735%.

The five-year yield JP5YTN=JBTC fell 2 bps to 0.96%.