Bond yields collapse | Trump’s trade war: What’s the endgame? | $15 trillion in negative yields

Investors are rushing to the safety of government bonds as the world prepares for a U.S.-China trade war without an end in sight.

VIEW IN BROWSER | SUBSCRIBE WED, AUG 07, 2019 EVENING BRIEF AS OF WED, AUG 07, 2019 • 04:00 ET DJIA 26007.65 -0.08% -21.87 S&P 500 2884.05 +0.08% +2.28 NASDAQ 7862.83 +0.38% +29.56   Most Active DOW NAME LAST CHG %CHG AAPL 199.04 +2.04 +1.04% MSFT 135.28 +0.59 +0.44% INTC 46.73 -0.23 -0.49% S&P 500 NAME LAST CHG %CHG GE 9.45 -0.12 -1.25% BAC 27.89 -0.53 -1.86% AMD 29.19 +0.33 +1.14% NASDAQ NAME LAST CHG %CHG AMD 29.19 +0.33 +1.14% MU 41.75 -0.87 -2.04% AAPL 199.04 +2.04 +1.04% EDITOR'S NOTE It's a tough week to be holding risky assets. Instead of stocks, investors are rushing to the safety of government bonds as the world prepares for a U.S.-China trade war without an end in sight.     The flight to safety sent the yield on the 10-year Treasury note — used as a benchmark for mortgage rates and auto loans — to a low of 1.595%, the lowest level since autumn 2016.  Bond yields move inversely to their prices, so yields fall when investors are buying up Treasurys. The yield on the 30-year Treasury bond bottomed at around 2.12%, near its all-time low hit in 2016, CNBC's Tom Franck reports.  Investors were also watching a longtime recession gauge: the spread between the 2-year Treasury yield and the 10-year yield. That hit its lowest level since June 2007.    The plummet in rates Wednesday also comes after central banks in India, New Zealand and Thailand surprised markets in overnight trading with aggressive rate cuts, joining a growing global shift toward easier monetary policy. It's not just lower rates — negative-yielding government bonds now make up 25% of the global bond market, according to Deutsche Bank. That's about $15 trillion of government bonds worldwide trading at negative yields. The number has nearly tripled since October 2018.     Investors blame central banks, the China-U.S. trade war, deflationary technology and a global shift in demographics for this phenomenon. The good news is that U.S. Treasurys, while hovering near all-time lows, still pay at least something. But as CNBC's Al Lewis points out, in the end, none of this is a good sign for the economy.    Have friends or colleagues who might like this newsletter? Tell them they can sign up for CNBC's Evening Brief here. Kate Rooney | CNBC Markets Reporter @Kr00ney TOP NEWS  Dow turns positive, recovering from earlier 589-point drop as bond-yield slide stabilizes Investors try to figure out Trump's trade war endgame: 'I can't even tell you what victory is' China may be willing to accept an economic downturn to hurt Trump and win a better trade deal Amount of global debt with negative yields balloons to $15 trillion Banks pummeled as rates dive, but analysts say these stocks are already 'priced for a recession' The direction of the US stock market is being determined by China's currency right now Gold surges above $1,500, now has a better return than stocks this year Here's the level where Guggenheim's Minerd sees the 10-year yield ending its decline for now FDA investigating 127 reports of seizures after vaping Disney won't hurt Netflix by stealing subscribers — but it will make it harder for Netflix to raise prices     TOP VIDEO Visa CEO Al Kelly on Apple's credit card and the trade war   SPECIAL REPORTS Dow tumbles again, but two names could be a buy Watch these two tech stocks as sector stabilizes   Unsubscribe Manage Newsletters Terms of Service Join the CNBC Panel Digital Products Feedback Privacy Policy   © 2019 CNBC LLC. All rights reserved. A property of NBCUniversal. 900 Sylvan Avenue, Englewood Cliffs, NJ 07632 Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes. Global Business and Financial News, Stock Quotes and Market Data and Analysis. Data also provided by THOMSON REUTERS