Christine Albano is a reporter in the Investor’s & Investing beat, which she has covered for the past two decades. She has a wide range of buy side sources in the municipal market and has covered trends affecting retail investors, institutions, municipal mutual funds, tax-exempt money market funds, and the high-yield beat. She has also written about some of the industry’s biggest issues, such as historic defaults in Orange County, Calif., Puerto Rico, and Jefferson County, Ala., as well as the collapse of the variable-rate demand market. In addition, she reported on the subsequent 2008 financial crisis, and the death of municipal bond pioneer Jim Lebenthal. She provided next day coverage of the impact on the municipal bond market of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center, and recently interviewed The Vanguard Group Inc. founder, former chief executive officer, and investment guru John C. Bogle about the best investing advice for the municipal market.
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While the pressure was on municipal yields, which rose two to four basis points, the Investment Company Institute reported another week of inflows, with $928 million coming into municipal bond mutual funds and another $285 million into ETFs.
May 12 -
Tighter spreads and richer ratios are likely to continue, particularly as looming tax increases amplify the value of the tax-exemption, but analysts are hesitant to predict how much lower rates can go before investors balk.
May 10 -
Refinitiv Lipper reported $584 million of inflows, $341 million of which went to high-yield, as investors pull back on reinvesting to pay tax bills with the May 17 tax filing deadline looming.
May 6 -
Pennsylvania's competitive GO deal saw its yields fall further from recent trading while the North Texas Tollway Authority benefited from positive credit news on the transportation sector and repriced 25 basis points lower. ICI reported another round of $2-billion-plus inflows.
May 5 -
The municipal market largely ignored the FOMC news that it would hold rates steady. New Jersey was 20 times oversubscribed and ICI reported $2.5 billion of inflows into long-term municipal bond mutual funds.
April 28 -
Data released Tuesday show an improving economy, which continues to stoke fears of impending inflation. Muni investors await New Jersey's $1.57 billion transportation deal.
April 27 -
After swallowing nearly $10 billion of new supply on the week, the market was quiet Friday ahead of the $5.5 billion calendar coming up.
April 23 -
High-grade scales were little changed as ICI reports the sixth week in a row of inflows to the tune of $2.29 billion into municipal bond mutual funds.
April 21 -
The municipal market was steady Monday as the investors gear up for three separate billion-dollar deals heading to market from California, New York, and Connecticut issuers.
April 19 -
Four out of the six economic indicators released on Thursday surpassed expectations, with consumers tapping their savings to quench pent-up demand. U.S. Treasuries made gains but municipals stood on their own in an impressive two-day rally with insatiable demand.
April 15 -
Ratios aren't budging as municipal to UST outperformance is not abating. The three largest deals of the week will be taxable, increasing the demand component for exempt paper.
April 9 -
High-yield inflows return to the tune of $821 million. The 10-year triple-A hovers just above 1%.
April 8 -
The two firms have collaborated to include the ICE Municipal Yield Curve and spreads for all underlying trades to all Lumesis customers using its DIVER New Issue and Secondary Pricing services.
April 7 -
The theme of low supply, positive inflows and the anticipation of higher tax rates led triple-A benchmarks firmer by one to two basis points.
April 6 -
The services sector showed improvement and employment made big gains in March, but economists note the labor market remains far from full employment.
April 5 -
Non-farm payrolls rose 916,000 in March, according to a Labor Department report Friday, while the unemployment rate fell to 6%.
April 1 -
Biden's $2 trillion infrastructure proposal, combined with the shortened week and the arrival of the second quarter, took attention away from the muni market.
March 31 -
Larger fund flows, lower supply and optimism surrounding issuer credit post-stimulus allowed for a March price reversal that avoids posting two consecutive months with losses. The consumer confidence index jumped to its highest reading in a year in March.
March 30 -
Municipals continue to outperform Treasuries amid a light holiday-shortened week led by a California tobacco deal.
March 29 -
A trio of municipal bond analysts say now is the time for investors to take advantage of the strength and resilience of the asset class.
March 29
