TREASURIES-Yields rise as Yellen warns about delaying rate hike

(Recasts with Yellen testimony)

* Yellen gives hawkish testimony before Senate

* 10-year yields highest in more than a week

By Karen Brettell

NEW YORK, Feb 14 (Reuters) - U.S. Treasury yields jumped on

Tuesday after Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen said it would

be unwise to wait too long to raise interest rates, striking a

more hawkish tone than investors expected.

The U.S. central bank will likely need to raise rates at an

upcoming meeting, Fed Chair Janet Yellen said, although she

flagged considerable uncertainty over economic policy under the

Trump administration.

Yellen said delaying rate increases could leave the Fed's

policymaking committee behind the curve and eventually lead it

to hike rates quickly, which she said could cause a recession.

“It was hawkish, but the market was expecting it to be

hawkish,” said Ian Lyngen, head of U.S. rates strategy at BMO

Capital Markets in New York.

“What we are seeing is a down trade on the headline that

waiting too long to tighten monetary policy would be unwise. I

think that’s the biggest headline that everyone reacted to."

Benchmark 10-year notes dropped 15/32 in price

to yield 2.49 percent, the highest since Feb. 3, up from 2.44

percent before the testimony.

(Editing by Meredith Mazzilli)

)