The primary Treasury debt contract that the market refers to when discussing how Treasuries are performing. The 10-year Treasury note is the current benchmark; as the benchmark, it is the most frequently used instrument for hedging purposes. The 30-year bond used to be the benchmark, but after the U.S. government debt was virtually erased at the end of the 1990s, the Department of the Treasury announced that it would no longer issue 30-year bonds. Because the government simply didnÂ’t need the money generated by 30-year bonds, the benchmark shifted to the most liquid, most heavily traded bond, the 10-year note.