The tax-exempt market started to show signs of slowing Friday afternoon as traders headed home for the weekend.
"Activity has died off," a New Jersey trader said. "It felt firmer in the morning and Treasuries improved but it's just quiet now."
Overall, this trader said the market feels very tight. "Buyers are buying what they have to, but they are trying to wait. For retail, it's very frustrating. And there isn't a lot of flow."
Municipal bond market scales finished flat across the curve Thursday after posting gains throughout the week.
Yields on the Municipal Market Data triple-A GO scale ended steady. The 10-year yield and the 30-year yield finished flat at 1.81% and 2.91%, respectively, for the second session. The two-year closed at 0.31% for the eighth straight session.
Yields on the Municipal Market Advisors 5% coupon triple-A benchmark scale also closed steady. The 10-year and the 30-year yield ended the day flat at 1.83% and 2.99%, respectively. The two-year was steady at 0.33% for the third session.
Treasuries continued to gain Friday afternoon. The benchmark 10-year yield and the 30-year yield dropped three basis points each to 1.86% and 3.06%, respectively. The two-year was steady at 0.25%.
