U.S. securities rallied, led by longer-dated notes, while other refuge assets also gained. The yen at one point climbed more than 1% to around 105 per dollar, while bund yields became even more deeply negative. A stronger-than-expected U.S. jobs report failed to significantly shift the pessimistic tone and traders now expect a half-point cut from the Federal Reserve this month.

"What we are seeing is symptomatic of not enough positive yielding, defensive assets within global fixed income," said John Taylor, a money manager at AllianceBernstein. "Central banks are doing everything they can to provide stimulus, which can add fuel to the flames of the bond rally."

The moves came as stocks around the world plunged and futures pointed to another day of losses in U.S. equities. The number of coronavirus cases globally approached 100,000, as more infections were reported in the U.S., Germany and South Korea. Singapore warned of a global pandemic and Britain's chief scientific adviser said a vaccine could take as long as 18 months to develop.

The five-year Treasury yield breached its 2012 low, dropping to a record low 0.5261%. The yield on 10-year debt -- which has fallen by more than half in just over two weeks -- dropped as much as 22 basis points to an unprecedented 0.6932%, before bouncing to around 0.71% as of 9:10 a.m. in New York. The 30-year rate, meanwhile, plunged as much as 27 basis points Friday to 1.2742%, also a record low, flattening the yield curve.