Investors flocked to the relative safety of government bonds on Wednesday, pushing yields on United States Treasuries and on German bunds sharply lower. The yield on the 10-year United States Treasury note — a benchmark for many interest rates — fell the most since March 2009, slipping below the psychologically important 2 percent level for the first time in many months. Bond yields and prices move in the opposite directions from each other.Much of the selling in United States stocks, traders said on Wednesday, was being driven by hedge funds unloading big positions in benchmark stocks that for most of the year have shown strong returns. With the end of the year approaching and markets falling fast, these momentum investors have turned tail.

via Stocks Turn Volatile on Global Growth Worries – NYTimes.com.