0556 GMT - The wider variety of bonds accepted by the U.S. Treasury at its buyback operation on Thursday and the fact that a portion of the maximum size went unfilled may indicate that the quality of offers was somewhat lower than in recent operations, J.P. Morgan strategists say in a note. "Indeed, total offers submitted remained near local lows despite the larger size of the operation, and the offer-to-max ratio reached its lowest level in the sector since the start of the program," they say. The Treasury accepted $5.2 billion of longer-term bonds, below the maximum $6 billion that it was willing to buy. The U.S. continues to run a 6% budget deficit in an economy near full employment, "something that cannot be addressed without real fiscal consolidation," they say.