More than $20 billion in short-term bank loans owed to foreign banks have been repackaged into longer-term debt, further easing the pressure.

And the Fed has not yet raised rates on short-term borrowings even close to those on longer-term debt.

These payoffs have lowered durations quickly and one way to offset that decline is to buy longer-term debt, including 50-year bonds.

Their success encouraged the agency to issue longer-term debt with similar sinking fund payments.

Mexico has had several successes this year in placing longer-term debt on the markets.

In addition, the Treasury is expected to continue buying back longer-term debt, although the total may decline each year.

What it's doing now is buying longer-term debt.

Another bellwether of the crisis comes Friday, when Italy tries to auction more than $9 billion in longer-term debt.

The Treasury will buy back some longer-term debt later this year.

Higher oil prices also fed inflation concerns, driving up yields on longer-term debt.