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Wall Street is eyeing the bond market's long summer slump as oil price soar and debt levels escalate.

U.S. and U.K. 10-year government-bond yields rose to two-month highs while the equivalent German yield hit its highest level since 2011 as escalating clashes in the Middle East lifted Brent crude close to $100 a barrel.

Retirees need access to steady income. The Vanguard Total Bond Market Index Fund ETF fits the bill nicely.

Bond ETF inflows are running 60% ahead of last year's level, which was itself a record pace, a rise that a BlackRock executive described as "shocking" to CNBC. Elevated stock market volatility, a new Fed chair, and ongoing inflation fears are all part of the picture as investors in the market hunt for maximum "real yield.

The U.S. Federal Reserve is becoming tougher for Wall Street to forecast, with dramatically different views ​on where monetary policy is headed.