NEW YORK (CNNfn) - Treasury securities were little-changed Tuesday, slipping modestly, as the day's economic data was shrugged off and concerns about Wednesday's OPEC meeting waned.
In currency markets, the dollar slipped against the euro and the yen in quiet trading.
"It's like watching paint dry," said Mike Ryan, senior bond analyst at PaineWebber. "There's just not a whole lot on the economic release calendar this week. The trade imbalance was a little wider than consensus expectations but it was not a blowout number."
The U.S. trade deficit narrowed to $30.4 billion in April, the government reported Tuesday, a bit below March's revised reading but still higher than Wall Street forecasts.
Just before 3 p.m. ET, the price of the 10-year note fell 5/32 to 103-15/32. Its yield, which moves inversely to its price, advanced modestly to 6.01 percent from 6.0 percent Monday. The 30-year bond slid 3/32 to 104-28/32, its yield rose to 5.9 percent from 5.89 percent.
 Activity has been dampened as investors await the next Federal Reserve meeting about monetary policy June 27-28. Analysts say that much of the expectations have been priced into the market already.
"Expectations are that the Fed is going to do nothing and refrain from raising rates and maintain an inflation risk bias," said Ryan. "
A.G. Edwards' fixed income analyst Bill Hornbarger agreed. "Everyone wants to get through the Fed with the affirmation. The consensus in the marketplace is no move out of the Fed and I do think that's been priced into the market."
Treasury debt buyback, two-year note auction eyed
Analysts will be watching the government debt buyback on Thursday and the two-year note auction Wednesday. The debt buyback, based on longer-term bonds, is conducted twice monthly in $1 billion-to-$4 billion increments. Thursday's buyback is widely expected to be done at $2 billion.
 The two-year note is susceptible to greater volatility by nature, and analysts suggest that a change in the auction could be forthcoming but not necessarily in this cycle.
"There has been some speculation that you could conceivably see the two-year note cut back to a quarterly cycle from a monthly," said Ryan. "I do think that will happen, but I don't think it will be announced tomorrow."
No surprises expected from OPEC
Analysts will be watching for news from the 109th meeting of OPEC, which will decide whether to increase production.
The 11 major oil-producing countries, which supply some 40 percent of the world's crude oil, will meet in Vienna Wednesday.
 "Yesterday there were rumors that (OPEC president) Ali Rodriguez was going to push for pretty substantial production increases from OPEC, but what we've heard is that these production increases will be less than what was speculated," said PaineWebber's Ryan. "Yesterday had crude prices down sharply but they're rebounding today. Inventories are still low and demand, globally, continues to rise."
If OPEC agrees to add 900,000 barrels per day to its output, production would rise nearly 3.5 percent from current quotas.
Prices for crude oil for August delivery rose $1.27 to $29.32 a barrel on London's International Petroleum Exchange. The U.S. benchmark index for light sweet crude rose 10 cents for August delivery to $29.58 a barrel.
"We really need some help from OPEC and the Saudis to help control inflation," Peter Morici, senior fellow at the Economic Strategy Institute, told CNNfn's Before Hours.
Dollar slips
In the currency markets, the dollar was modestly weaker against the euro and the yen.
 Just before 3 p.m. ET, the euro rose to 95.79 cents from 95.74 cents Monday. The dollar fell to 105.35 yen from 105.87 yen.
"The pre-FOMC caution and lull in the marketplace appears to give traders little reason to put on aggressive positions," wrote Alex Beuzelin, market analyst at Ruesch International, in a note to clients. "The Japanese yen extended its recent gains as the Mori government upgraded its assessment of economic conditions." 
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