Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Monday that regularly scheduled Treasury auctions of U.S. debt are expected to continue as usual after his agency announced a larger buyback program for longer-dated securities.

Bessent made the comments at a press conference focused on a new plan for the "economic asphyxiation" of the Iranian regime through secondary sanctions on Iran's trading partners.

Asked whether the Treasury might reduce the size of future auctions for longer-term debt or use other tools to help lower yields, Bessent said, "We are going to continue with our regular program of auctions. So you will be hearing from us again at the beginning of next quarter," he said. In response to a follow-up question, he added, "We haven't bought a single bond yet."

Bessent said the next auctions of longer-dated Treasurys, including the 10-year note and the 20- and 30-year bonds, are not scheduled until mid-September. That means the earliest the new buyback structure could take effect would be after the change becomes effective on Sept. 9.

The Treasury announced on Aug. 19 that the maximum buyback authority would rise from $2 billion per operation to at least $4 billion per operation. The new amount will function as a floor rather than a cap, allowing buyback size to adjust to market conditions.

The change is set to remain in effect through the rest of the quarter, or through Nov. 4. After that, the Treasury said it will provide additional information about future buyback sizes.

In its announcement, Treasury said the "increase in buyback operations reflects Treasury's desire to provide greater liquidity support in longer-dated nominal sectors where there is consistent strong sponsorship from market participants, as evidenced by the significant volume of high-quality offers Treasury routinely receives in longer-dated buyback operations."

Last week's announcement briefly pushed lower yields on the 10-year Treasury note and on 20- and 30-year bonds, though those declines largely reversed by the end of the week. Yields were modestly lower Monday.

Bessent said last week that the larger buybacks are intended to support liquidity in a thinner part of the market, particularly in the 30-year sector. He also noted that longer-dated Treasurys are competing with heavy corporate bond issuance at higher yields amid the artificial intelligence buildout.

Higher Treasury yields can add fiscal pressure for the federal government by increasing the interest cost of servicing the national debt, which rose above $40 trillion for the first time last week. The buyback program is one way Treasury can manage liquidity in the long end of the market without changing the regular auction schedule, which makes the policy noteworthy for investors watching supply conditions across maturities.

The Treasury Department did not identify the funding source for the buybacks. A Reuters report said the Treasury General Account, or TGA, at the Federal Reserve could be used because it would avoid the need to issue new shorter-dated Treasurys, though it would reduce cash reserves.

The TGA serves as the federal government's checking account and is used to pay for daily government operations, including federal worker salaries, contracts, and Treasury interest and principal obligations.

As of last Wednesday, the TGA held about $940 billion. Treasury has increased the balance this year in part to help cover some of the $166 billion in tariff refunds owed to importers after a Supreme Court ruling struck down a key portion of President Donald Trump's tariff regime.

Over the past year, the TGA has averaged about $840 billion, its highest average balance outside the rapid buildup seen during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Reuters contributed to this report.