The war in Iran, oil prices and worries about a recession have all taken turns driving stock prices in 2026 but talk about interest rates and where they are going has been a constant concern all year. In the last few weeks, interest rate worries have come to the surface again, for three reasons, all related. The first is the rise in long-term US treasury rates to levels not seen in twenty years. The second is US debt exceeding $40 trillion for the first time , bringing attention to a long-standing worry that this debt burden may be hitting a tipping point for bond buyers. The third is a that the Federal Reserve has a new chair in Kevin Warsh, and for the many Fed Watchers, who are uncertain about where he plans to lead the Fed, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting coming up in mid-September looms larger than ever. In this post, I hope to step back from the day-to-day coverage of US treasury yields and look at their performance in 2026, not only with a longer term perspectiv