CONVEX
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▍ STATISTICAL PROJECTION · YEAR-END 2026

Based on current macro regime conditions and 2y treasury yield's historical behaviour in similar regimes, the model projects 6.94% by 2026-12-31 ( +73.6% from 4.00% today). The 68% confidence range is 4.59% to 9.29%; the wider 95% range is 2.34% to 11.55%. Methodology below the headline.

Central Estimate
6.94%
+73.6% vs current 4.00%
68% Range (±1σ)
4.59% to 9.29%
95% Range (±1.96σ)
2.34% to 11.55%
Blended from 4 regime anchors· sample-weighted
VIX · Normal (15-25)
+103.4%n=3,026 · w=43%
10Y-2Y Yield Curve · Flat (0-100bps)
+27.8%n=2,126 · w=30%
HY OAS Spread · Tight (<350bps)
+375.1%n=918 · w=13%
Trade-Weighted Dollar · Weak (bottom tercile)
+108.0%n=992 · w=14%
METHOD: CENTRAL = SAMPLE-WEIGHTED MEAN OF PER-ANCHOR CURRENT-REGIME 1Y AVERAGES, SCALED TO 159-DAY HORIZON. BAND = ±σ√T USING 73.9% ANNUALIZED REALIZED VOL.
EXPECTED TO BE 6.94% BY 2026-12-31 (HIGHER FROM 4.00% ON 2026-05-14). NOT INVESTMENT ADVICE.
▍ MODEL · STATISTICAL FORECAST · 2026

2Y Treasury Yield Forecast 2026

Quantitative analysis from 6,249 observations of 2Y Treasury Yield history, joined to four universal macro regime classifications. Numbers are computed, not narrated.

ByConvex Research Desk·Edited byBen Bleier·
DGS2 · LAST
4.00%
AS OF 2026-05-14
Percentile · 25Y History
82.1th
▍ HEADLINE SIGNAL · CONTRARIAN BULLISH
Hist. Avg +252d
+375.1%
vs -0.4% unconditional · +375.5%pp above
When HY OAS Spread sits in its Tight (<350bps) regime — as it does today (2.76) — 2Y Treasury Yield has historically returned an average of +375.10% over the next 252 trading days, 375.5pp above the all-history average of -0.35%. Sample: 918 observations, 41.1% hit rate.
METHOD: PERCENTILE-RANK MATCHED, LOOK-AHEAD-BIAS-FREE·NOT A FORECAST·HISTORICAL CONDITIONAL AVERAGE

Regime Scan[01/04]

VIX
Normal (15-25)
+103.4%+1Y AVG
Δ +103.8%pp · n=3,026
10Y-2Y Yield Curve
Flat (0-100bps)
+27.8%+1Y AVG
Δ +28.2%pp · n=2,126
HY OAS Spread
Tight (<350bps)
+375.1%+1Y AVG
Δ +375.5%pp · n=918
Trade-Weighted Dollar
Weak (bottom tercile)
+108.0%+1Y AVG
Δ +108.4%pp · n=992

Δ = divergence from -0.4% unconditional all-history average

Performance by Window[02]

WINDOWNANN RETANN VOLRET/VOLHIT %TOTAL
1Y251-1.24%19.59%-0.0640.8%-1.23%
3Y7500.08%22.41%0.0044.3%0.25%
5Y1,25090.38%58.23%1.5547.2%2400.00%
10Y2,50017.62%74.50%0.2443.1%406.33%
All6,249-0.35%73.92%-0.0042.1%-8.47%

Annualized total return = (1 + total)^(1/years) - 1. Ret/Vol is the annualized return divided by annualized volatility (Sharpe-equivalent without risk-free subtraction). Hit % = pct of single periods that were positive.

Where We Are Now[03]

Percentile Rank
82.1th
0.09median 1.705.29
Current value 4.0000 on a 6,249-observation history going back to Feb 5, 2021.
Volatility Regime
low
16.91%REALIZED 30D ANN
Sits at the 11.7th percentile vs full history. Median 53.88%.

Forward Returns by Macro Regime[04]

How 2Y Treasury Yield has performed historically conditional on the prevailing macro regime. The current bucket is highlighted; +1Y averages drive the headline signal above.

VIX
Volatility regime: Low (<15), Normal (15-25), Elevated (25-40), Extreme (>40)
CURRENT: 17.26 Normal (15-25)
REGIME BUCKETN+30D+90D+1Y AVG+1Y MEDHIT %
Low (<15)2,0822.98%7.84%18.70%24.59%62.2%
Normal (15-25)3,0262.87%13.02%103.40%-0.43%49.0%
Elevated (25-40)9391.52%5.16%25.26%-3.43%45.6%
Extreme (>40)191-12.26%-7.40%-13.35%-14.58%30.4%
10Y-2Y Yield Curve
Yield curve regime: Inverted (<0bps), Flat (0-100bps), Steep (>100bps)
CURRENT: 0.50 Flat (0-100bps)
REGIME BUCKETN+30D+90D+1Y AVG+1Y MEDHIT %
Inverted (<0bps)7820.99%1.81%-7.70%-8.99%31.6%
Flat (0-100bps)2,1261.12%5.55%27.84%0.88%50.4%
Steep (>100bps)3,3413.21%13.59%91.38%17.19%58.4%
HY OAS Spread
Credit regime: Tight (<350bps), Normal (350-500bps), Stressed (>500bps)
CURRENT: 2.76 Tight (<350bps)
REGIME BUCKETN+30D+90D+1Y AVG+1Y MEDHIT %
Tight (<350bps)91810.08%51.31%375.10%-6.14%41.1%
Normal (350-500bps)1,3692.55%7.48%55.48%10.16%59.8%
Stressed (>500bps)5521.30%7.46%41.24%43.75%82.4%
Trade-Weighted Dollar
Dollar regime: bottom/middle/top tercile of trailing 5Y rolling distribution
CURRENT: 118.04 Weak (bottom tercile)
REGIME BUCKETN+30D+90D+1Y AVG+1Y MEDHIT %
Weak (bottom tercile)9920.52%0.25%108.01%-47.62%17.4%
Neutral (middle)1,2305.58%31.00%173.43%21.95%62.7%
Strong (top tercile)2,5961.70%5.65%17.64%11.83%58.2%

Forward returns are forward-looking from each historical observation in the bucket; +252d corresponds to one trading year. Buckets with fewer than 5 forward-return observations are reported as n/a. These are conditional historical averages, not forecasts.

Lead-Lag Relationships[05]

For each universally-recognised leading indicator, the lag at which the daily-return correlation peaks. Positive lag means the anchor leads 2Y Treasury Yield; negative means it lags.

ANCHORROLEPEAK LAGPEAK CORRZERO-LAGRELATIONSHIP
10Y Treasury YieldDiscount-rate driver0d0.6360.636coincident
Baa-10Y SpreadCredit risk (slow)0d-0.354-0.354coincident
HY OAS SpreadCredit risk leader0d-0.321-0.321coincident
VIXVolatility leader0d-0.164-0.164coincident
Initial Jobless ClaimsLabor leader+1d0.142-0.110weak
CopperGlobal growth proxy0d0.0900.090weak
Trade-Weighted DollarFX driver+46d-0.0410.007weak
10Y-2Y Yield SpreadRecession leader0d-0.037-0.037weak
NFCIFinancial conditions+52d-0.033-0.015weak
U-Mich Consumer SentimentSurvey leader0d0.0000.000weak

Pearson correlation of daily returns over up to 25 years of overlapping history, searched across a ±60-day lag grid. Indicators classified as “weak” don't have meaningful predictive power at daily resolution; many of these (yield curve, NFCI, sentiment) lead at monthly/quarterly horizons instead.

Historical Analogs[06]

Periods where 2Y Treasury Yield sat at a similar percentile rank to today, with what happened over the next 30 / 90 / 252 trading days. Analogs are clustered to avoid double-counting nearby dates.

DATEVALUE+30D+90D+1Y
May 13, 20254.0200-7.96%-10.20%n/a
Feb 12, 20254.3600-8.94%-13.99%-20.41%
Nov 14, 20244.3400-2.30%-8.53%-17.51%
Aug 16, 20244.0600-9.85%6.16%-6.65%
Feb 1, 20244.200012.38%14.52%-0.71%

Worst Historical Drawdown[07]

-98.30%PEAK-TO-TROUGH
Peak Jun 28, 2006 → trough Feb 5, 2021. Has not yet recovered to prior peak.
All-time high: 5.2900 on Jun 28, 2006 · Current DD from ATH: -24.39%

Cross-Asset Correlations · 1Y[08]

S&P 500
-0.074
n=244
Nasdaq 100
-0.031
n=244
20Y Treasury
-0.649
n=244
Gold
-0.161
n=244
Bitcoin
0.008
n=246

Largest Single-Period Moves[09]

▲ Up
  • Feb 25, 202141.67%
  • Jun 5, 200937.50%
  • Mar 24, 202035.71%
  • Mar 10, 202031.58%
  • Jun 16, 202131.25%
▼ Down
  • Aug 9, 2011-29.63%
  • Mar 16, 2020-26.53%
  • Mar 23, 2020-24.32%
  • May 7, 2020-23.53%
  • Feb 28, 2020-22.52%

Calendar-Month Seasonality[10]

Average single-period return aggregated by the calendar month in which the period ended.

MONTHAVG RETURNHIT %N
January-0.09%41.3%508
February0.22%43.2%479
March0.11%44.4%545
April0.12%41.8%526
May-0.02%41.4%526
June0.31%42.0%529
July-0.14%39.1%529
August-0.05%40.1%554
September0.10%41.7%508
October0.24%42.7%529
November0.16%43.0%488
December0.33%44.0%527

N = 6,249 OBS · GENERATED 2026-05-18 06:30Z

Forecast Approach

scenario weighted: We aggregate probability-weighted outcomes across active tracked scenarios, each with historical base rates and current heat scores. The projection above is the sample-weighted central estimate across current macro regime anchors; the scenario list below adds qualitative context.

Consensus source: Fed dot plot and futures market

Key Drivers & Risks

  • Federal Reserve policy
  • Inflation expectations
  • Economic growth
  • Global yield differentials
  • Treasury supply

Historical Volatility

Moderate: typically 50-150bps annual range

How 2Y Yield Forecasts Have Held Up Historically

2Y Treasury yield forecasts are dominated by Fed policy expectations and have a better track record than 10Y forecasts when the Fed is in a clear cycle phase. During the 2022-2023 hiking cycle, consensus 2Y forecasts captured the direction (correctly bullish) but missed the magnitude (the realized 5.25% peak exceeded most January 2022 forecasts by 250bp+).

Regime-conditional models on the 2Y achieve approximately 70% directional accuracy, the highest of any single rate. The 2Y is the rate that the Fed most directly controls through policy guidance, so the dot plot has been more useful here than at the long end despite still under-predicting policy peaks.

Regime Sensitivity for DGS2

The 2Y yield is the cleanest single rate-regime indicator. Hiking cycles push the 2Y above the funds rate; cutting cycles pull it below. The 2Y currently sits roughly 20-30bp below the funds rate target (3.50-3.75%) at 3.79%, reflecting the cuts pricing in for late 2026.

In April 2026 with 4 FOMC dissenters voting for cuts April 29, the 2Y is anchored by the cuts-priced-in versus cuts-deferred tension. Goldilocks regimes typically pull the 2Y below the funds rate as cuts price in; stagflation regimes push the 2Y above the funds rate as additional hikes price in. The regime conditional reads as moderately bullish on the 2Y (cuts probable) with risk that inflation re-acceleration delays the cuts.

What Drives DGS2 Forecast Errors

Two structural issues drive 2Y forecast errors. First, Fed reaction-function uncertainty. The 2022-2023 hiking cycle saw the Fed shift from "transitory" to "decisive" framing within months; the regime classifier captures the framing only after the fact.

Second, the 2Y prices in the next 24 months of policy moves; any single piece of news that shifts the rate path (PCE print surprise, employment surprise, financial-stability event) moves the 2Y 10-25bp without any change in the underlying regime. The bootstrap distribution under-states this near-term volatility.

How to Use This Forecast in Practice

For DGS2, watch the OIS curve and Fed funds futures alongside the regime conditional. When OIS prices in cuts that the dots haven't yet endorsed (the April 2026 setup), the 2Y leans bullish but with reversal risk if Fed hawks dominate the next FOMC.

The cleanest cross-check for DGS2 is the 2Y-FFR spread. A 2Y trading 25bp+ below the funds rate signals cuts pricing in; 2Y at or above the funds rate signals additional hikes pricing in. The 68% band on DGS2 should be treated as the tightest of any rate forecast because of the Fed's direct policy control over the front end.

Frequently Asked Questions

What factors could push 2Y Treasury Yield higher?

The primary drivers that tend to lift 2Y Treasury Yield depend on the current macro regime. Interest rates set the price of money and ripple through every asset class. An inverted yield curve has preceded every U.S. recession since the 1960s, making this the single most-watched corner of fixed income. Monitoring rate differentials, real yields, and forward expectations helps traders anticipate risk-on or risk-off regime shifts. Convex tracks these drivers live across the Yield Curve & Rates category and flags when multiple forces align in the same direction. See the "Key Drivers & Risks" section on this page for the current list, and check the regime dashboard for how the macro backdrop is currently tilted.

What factors could push 2Y Treasury Yield lower?

The same transmission channels that drive 2Y Treasury Yield higher operate in reverse when conditions flip. The risk drivers listed above map directly to scenarios that, if triggered, would pull this metric in the opposite direction. Convex aggregates these into a scenario-weighted probability distribution rather than a point forecast, so the magnitude depends on which scenarios activate.

Where does consensus see 2Y Treasury Yield heading?

Rather than publish a point target that goes stale the day after release, Convex assembles consensus from the macro regime classification, active scenario probabilities, and historical base rates. Point forecasts from banks and strategists are worth reading for context, but they typically cluster around the consensus and miss the tail events that actually move markets. The scenario-weighted approach here captures that tail risk explicitly.

What is the historical range for 2Y Treasury Yield?

Historical ranges for 2Y Treasury Yield vary dramatically by regime. A level that is extreme in Goldilocks can be routine in Stagflation, and vice versa. The Historical Volatility section on this page describes the typical range and regime-specific behavior. For the full multi-decade history, visit the 2Y Treasury Yield chart page, which includes selectable time ranges up to five years and downloadable data.

How often is the 2Y Treasury Yield forecast updated?

This forecast page recalculates whenever the underlying data or regime classification changes, typically within hours of new data releases. The scenario probabilities refresh daily as the macro state is regenerated. Specific drivers listed on this page reflect the current state of the Convex regime engine, not static historical assumptions.

Is this forecast actionable for trading?

Convex forecasts are informational and educational. They describe probability distributions and regime-conditional paths rather than specific entry and exit levels. Traders and portfolio managers use them alongside other inputs including position sizing rules, risk management, and their own conviction calibration. They are not investment advice.

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Forecasts are model-based projections derived from current regime classification, scenario probabilities, and historical patterns. They are not investment advice. All investments involve risk.