Municipal bond mutual funds reported a second straight week of inflows as the tax-exempt market continued its rebound from a six-month slump.
Those funds that report flows weekly posted inflows of $86 million for the week ended Jan. 22, Lipper FMI numbers showed. They reported inflows of $103 million the previous week,
The tax-exempt market extended its new year rally for another week as muni yields fell, outperforming those of Treasuries and dragging down ratios. A modest calendar of new deals received a good reception from an investor base with cash to spend.
Traders reported that the market's tone remains strong.
Assets for all muni funds that report flows weekly increased for a third straight week to $275.0 billion, from $273.9 billion for the week ended Jan. 15.
The value of the holdings for weekly reporting funds rose by $997 million. The previous week they increased by $1.75 billion.
The four-week moving average for all municipal bond mutual funds that report their flows weekly was $326 million of outflows, compared with $720 million of outflows the week before.
Long-term muni bond funds that report flows weekly recorded their second straight week of inflows, at $25 million, for the week ended Jan. 22. The week before, those funds reported inflows of $102 million following a stretch of heavy outflows.
High-yield muni bond funds recorded their third week of inflows, at $160 million. The previous week, they reported inflows of $276 million.
Assets for these high-yield funds rose to $35.58 billion from $35.20 billion the week before.
The value of the holdings for high-yield funds increased by $221 million, compared with a rise of $370 million the previous week.
The four-week moving average for all high-yield municipal bond funds that report their flows weekly showed $31 million of inflows, versus $105 million of outflows the previous week.
