The Australian bond market is slightly stronger after a quiet night of trade on offshore markets on Friday night.

“Trading was thin, given the holiday season and snowstorms in New York and Boston,” St George economist Janu Chan said.

“US treasuries were little changed following the mixed signals from Fed officials on the outlook for tapering and the lack of clear direction from sharemarkets.”

On Friday night, Australian time, US Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke said that monetary policy will remain be accommodative despite the central bank winding back of its economic stimulus.

Dr Bernanke’s comments contrasted those made recently by other Fed officials who said interest rates might be raised faster than expected once the Fed has tapered its bond purchase program.

At 0830 AEDT on Monday, the March 2014 10-year bond futures contract was trading at 95.705 (implying a yield of 4.295 per cent), up from 95.695 (4.305 per cent) on Friday.

The March 2014 three-year bond futures contract was at 96.920 (3.080 per cent), up from 96.940 (3.060 per cent).