Treasuries fell, with the difference between the 10-year note's yield and the two-year rate increasing to near the widest in more than 3 1/2 years, on bets Federal Reserve interest-rate cuts will stoke inflation. Bonds slumped as oil traded above $100 a barrel and gold futures rose to a record high. Treasuries pared earlier gains as speculation eased that policy makers are considering a cut in the discount rate at a meeting of the board of governors today.

A posting on the Fed's Web site said that a board meeting today would include the ``review and determination by the board of governors of the advance and discount rates to be charged by Federal Reserve banks.''

The Fed's first interest-rate response to the August credit collapse was to lower the discount rate, rather than the benchmark federal funds rate target. The market is hyper-sensitive to anything the Fed does.