Treasury yield surge, big bond losses may deliver tax win to investors

The bond market selloff has many investors licking their wounds, but it could also be a good time to take your losses as a tax advantage.

With the 10-year treasury yield seeing a massive single-day spike on Wednesday, hitting its highest level since 2007, and bond prices continuing to fall, investors who bought bond mutual funds or ETFs when yields were lower may be sitting on unrealized losses within their portfolio. Investors often wait until December to tax-loss harvest — or sell investments at a loss and use their losses to offset gains in other investments. But you don't have to wait. The very thing hurting your bond ETF today — higher yields — can potentially give you both a tax asset and an opportunity to reinvest at a higher yield.