Investors anticipate a quiet day as the municipal bond market is set to close Thursday afternoon at 2 p.m. and will closed for the Good Friday holiday.
Next week could test the market's strength, as many participants continue to pin firm yields on a lack of issuance. Total volume next week could reach $7.5 billion in deals, more than tripling this week's $2.1 billion of issuance, according to data from Ipreo and The Bond Buyer.
Munis were mostly steady as the market opened, according to Municipal Market Data's AAA scale. Bonds maturing from 2020 to 2027 firmed by as much as two basis points.
Longer-term Treasuries weakened Thursday morning, with the 30-year climbing three basis points to 3.48% and the 10-year benchmark jumping four basis points to 2.68%. The two-year notes slipped two basis points to 0.38%.
"We got a little bit of weakness in Treasuries, but it doesn't matter because munis are not following Treasuries this week," one Virginia-based trader said in an interview.
There are no deals over $100 million in the competitive market slated for issuance Thursday.
RBC Capital Markets brought a three-part deal to market Thursday totaling $126.9 million for the city of Cincinnati, Ohio.
Yields on bonds for the largest chunk, $116.6 million of unlimited tax various purpose improvement and refunding general obligation bonds, ranged from 0.18% with a 2% coupon in 2014 to 3.70% with a 5% coupon in 2034. The bonds are callable at par in 2022.
On Wednesday, Raymond James & Associates brought $121.3 million of gasoline and fuel tax second lien revenue refunding bonds to the market for the state of Louisiana. The bonds were priced at par to yield 0.576% in 2043. The bonds are callable at par in 2017 and feature a mandatory tender in 2018. The bonds are rated Aa2 by Moody's, AA by S&P and AA-minus by Fitch Ratings.
