The yield on the UK's 30 year government bond hit 6.029%, the highest level since 1998, leading a worldwide surge in borrowing costs on Oct. 1. US 10 year Treasury yields rose to 5.34%, while US 20 year and 30 year maturities also reached 24 year highs. This bond market volatility coincided with a miss in US manufacturing PMI data and a selloff that wiped $660 billion from US equity markets within a 90 minute window.

Global debt has reached a record $365 trillion, or roughly 310% of global GDP, increasing the pressure of debt servicing across several nations. Similar peaks were observed elsewhere, including a record for Japan's 30 year bond since 1999 and a 24 year high for France's 10 year bond. Liz Martins of HSBC told Reuters the sell-off indicates that markets lack faith in the ability of governments to manage their mounting debt loads.