Open (7)
Open
Does the October TIC release confirm Japan sold Treasuries to defend the yen?
The FIMA line stayed at zero through August, which points to Tokyo selling rather than borrowing dollars. The August TIC data (published around 16 Oct) is where that shows up in Japan's holdings.
Resolves on 16 Oct 2026 via data release · from The Monday Brief: Four Days and $119 Billion (8 Sept 2026)
Open
Do foreign official Treasury holdings rise, in dollars, on two consecutive TIC prints (July on 16 Sep, August on 16 Oct)?
His falsification test: two consecutive monthly rises would cut against the thesis. At send the July print was already down ($3,773.1 B vs $3,778.1 B in June and $3,845.9 B in May), so the October print can only fail to break the thesis. Resolves from the TIC 'Of Which: Foreign Official' row: fewer than two consecutive rises = as expected (thesis survives); two or more = contrary. The Japan-specific twin is the 16 Oct TIC item.
Resolves on 16 Oct 2026 via data release · from The Informationist Institutional, No. 1 — The Global Bond Bar Tab (20 Sept 2026)
Open
Does the enlarged long-end buyback survive the 4 Nov refunding at $6 B per operation, or is it cut or lapsed?
At send (20 Sep): the first enlarged operation on 10 Sep had a $6 B cap, $10.5 B offered and $5.19 B taken. Resolves from the long-end operations through 4 Nov and the Q4 tentative buyback schedule published at the refunding: 'kept' if long-end caps of at least $6 B per operation persist (as expected), 'cut' if they are lower (mixed), 'lapsed' if no long-end operations are scheduled (contrary). The $2 B caps on the pre-August schedule rows for 27 Oct and 4 Nov are not read as a cut until the Q4 schedule replaces them.
Resolves on 4 Nov 2026 via the post-refunding buyback schedule · from The Informationist Institutional, No. 1 — The Global Bond Bar Tab (20 Sept 2026)
Open
Are the expanded buybacks funded from TGA cash rather than new bills?
A CNBC report said so; Treasury has not confirmed. Evidence to weigh: the TGA path around operation days against bill issuance.
Resolves on 5 Nov 2026 via editor · from The Monday Brief: Last Words Before Fed Blackout Period (31 Aug 2026)
Open
Running against him: do reserves stop falling, fed funds sit under IORB and the standing repo facility go unused through Q4?
The one test currently running against the thesis. At send (16 Sep): fed funds printed 2 bp under IORB, the standing repo facility had gone days without a taker, and reserves were 9.3 % of GDP (week to 16 Sep) against the Fed staff's 10 % line. Closed by the editor on 31 Dec (his next quarterly) from the states of the EFFR − IORB, standing-repo and reserves-to-GDP gauges on that date: plumbing still loose = contrary to the thesis; tightening = as expected.
Resolves on 31 Dec 2026 via editor · from The Informationist Institutional, No. 1 — The Global Bond Bar Tab (20 Sept 2026)
Open
Does a government that cut its long-end supply see its long yield fall?
At send: Britain and Japan both cut long-end issuance in 2025 and both long yields rose (30-year gilt 5.93 % on 10 Sep, a 1998 level; 10-year JGB above 3 % on 2 Sep, first since 1996). evidence_source: owner-entered. No free 30-year gilt or JGB feed is verified, so the editor closes this on 31 Dec with citations: long yields lower after the cuts = contrary; not lower = as expected.
Resolves on 31 Dec 2026 via editor · from The Informationist Institutional, No. 1 — The Global Bond Bar Tab (20 Sept 2026)
Open
Does the Fed's four-quarter holdings growth cross his 6 % 'Response' line by year-end?
At send: 3.0 % through Q1 2026, and reserve-management purchases stopped on 14 Aug. Resolves from the four-quarter growth of securities held outright (H.4.1): crossing 6 % resolves at once as expected (a balance-sheet response); still under 6 % on 31 Dec resolves contrary.
Resolves on 31 Dec 2026 via gauge state · from The Informationist Institutional, No. 1 — The Global Bond Bar Tab (20 Sept 2026)
Resolved (10)
No data
20-year auction on 15 Sep, FOMC day one
A long-end auction landing during the meeting: the read is whether the 20-year clears without a tail while the Fed is silent.
Resolved 22 Sept 2026 via TreasuryDirect auction result · from The Monday Brief: Four Days and $119 Billion (8 Sept 2026)
Contrary
First enlarged long-end buyback (10 Sep): does Treasury take the stated floor, or more?
The discretion test: the cap is a floor the Treasury can exceed. Taking the full cap or more reads as expected; taking less than the cap is the opposite of 'floor or more'.
Resolved 22 Sept 2026 via FiscalData buyback result · from The Monday Brief: Four Days and $119 Billion (8 Sept 2026)
As expected
Do the odds of a September hike stay above 50 % into the blackout?
Resolved from the editor-entered FedWatch odds: 61.7 % on 4 Sep, above 50 %, and the first fall in the series came on strong payrolls because earnings cooled.
Resolved 8 Sept 2026 via editor · from The Monday Brief: Last Words Before Fed Blackout Period (31 Aug 2026)
Above 50 %: 61.7 % on 4 Sep per the FedWatch figure he reported on 8 Sep (entered by editor; no free feed).
Expired
Warren letter on the Exchange Stabilization Fund's legal basis: answers were due 28 Aug
No reply has been reported; the item expires unless the editor finds one.
Resolved — via editor · from The Monday Brief: A $432 Billion Month (17 Aug 2026)
No data
Belly week without a Treasury bid: the $44 B 7-year on 27 Aug
Resolved 22 Sept 2026 via TreasuryDirect auction result · from The Monday Brief: Friday at Ten (24 Aug 2026)
No data
Belly week without a Treasury bid: the $70 B 5-year on 26 Aug
Resolved 22 Sept 2026 via TreasuryDirect auction result · from The Monday Brief: Friday at Ten (24 Aug 2026)
No data
Belly week without a Treasury bid: the $69 B 2-year on 25 Aug
The belly is outside the expanded buyback window, so these auctions meet the market on their own.
Resolved 22 Sept 2026 via TreasuryDirect auction result · from The Monday Brief: Friday at Ten (24 Aug 2026)
Expired
$16 B of new 20-year paper on 20 Aug: if it is sloppy, expect more steepening
The 20-year is the least loved point on the curve; a weak result would push the long end wider.
Resolved — via TreasuryDirect auction result · from The Monday Brief: A $432 Billion Month (17 Aug 2026)
As expected
Does the $25 B 30-year auction on 13 Aug clear weakly, confirming term premium is here to stay?
Pre-registered test: weakness at the 30-year auction (a tail, a low bid-to-cover, a heavy dealer take) would say the term premium is structural rather than a passing scare.
Resolved 22 Sept 2026 via TreasuryDirect auction result · from The Monday Brief: The Long End Didn't Take It (10 Aug 2026)
No data
The next 10- and 30-year auctions after 29 Mar: weak bid-to-cover or tails would be the Stage-3 warning sign
Resolved from the April 2026 10-year (8 Apr) and 30-year (9 Apr) results in the auctions table.
Resolved 22 Sept 2026 via TreasuryDirect auction result · from Why the Treasury's Nightmare May Soon Be Yours (29 Mar 2026)