Annual percentage yields for the following terms are current as of May 5, 2010. BankShout surveys U.S. national and Internet-only banks for the highest yields on consumer certificates of deposit. All institutions mentioned below are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.

CD rates have mostly been falling, as BankShout followers are painfully aware. With savers looking to any means to increase returns, there has been one bright spot over the last several months: 2-year certificate rates, which brimmed the 2.00% APY mark last month and which rose at several banks in the last few weeks.

The national leader in 2-year certificate yield is a bank that had largely been cutting rates for most CD terms. NewdominonDIRECT.com, a Charlotte, North Carolina-based Internet bank, moved into the lead for 2-year yields with a 2.03% APY on minimum deposits of $3000. NewdominonDIRECT edged past a glut of banks that are offering 2.00% APY for the 24-months terms, including American Express Bank FSB, and Discover Bank, which require zero and $2500 minimum balances, respectively.

Other financial institutions advertising 2.00% APY are Aurora Bank, FSB, and iGObanking.com, both of which require $1000 minimum deposits to open a 2-year certificate. Ally Bank held its yield at 1.99% APY for a 2-year term, and the Utah Bank continues to require no minimum balance. Nexity Bank, of Alabama, was the only bank on this week’s list to cut 2-year yields; Nexity dropped to 1.98% APY for a $1000 balance, down from 1.99% in April.

All the banks listed above compound certificate of deposit interest on a daily basis.