James Ramage

Muni yields and indexes have risen modestly since Friday, according to the Municipal Market Data scale. But traders throughout the week have remarked how the market seems stronger, as several larger deals arrived early and were well-received.

New rules went into effect Tuesday to make the $65 billion credit-default swap market for municipal bonds less risky and more efficient for investors.

The municipal underwriting business at Bank of America Merrill Lynch started 2012 in much the same manner as it started 2011: on top.

New issuance of long-term municipal bonds continued to rebound in March from last year's relatively anemic figures, surging 82.5%.

The municipal market should expect a welcome, though moderate, uptick in new issuance this week.

The streak of inflows continues. Just when municipal bond fund flows appeared to be teetering into negative territory, they rebounded with a strong week.

By most standards, the tax-exempt market has had a respectable week.

Pension liabilities are burdening state budgets to a larger degree than previously thought, according to a new metric that Fitch Ratings uses.

The municipal market's primary calendar is braced for a week of low volume.

The municipal market has steadied somewhat after muni yields mostly battled those of Treasuries to a draw over the week.

Investors showed less interest in municipal bond mutual funds this past week. Still, funds saw inflows.

When Moody's Investors Service put the short-term credit rating of Bank of America under review for a downgrade back in February, that stirred up the water for tax-exempt money market funds.

The law firm Ballard Spahr LLP hired Jeffrey Cohen, a veteran litigator and authority on municipal debt restructuring, as a partner in its Denver office to augment its litigation capabilities in the Western region.

Municipal bond investors have long known that annual appropriation-type debt, such as certificates of participation, are inferior debt structures. Those investors who bought them had faith at the time in the issuer's responsibility to stand behind the debt.

Investors in the municipal market are starting to come to terms with higher yields for primary volume.

In a week that very well may have marked the end to five months of rallying for municipal bond yields, muni bond mutual funds still saw strong inflows.

Spring is definitely in the air on Wall Street, with a particularly sunny view toward equities. But for munis and Treasuries, with yields rising rapidly in the wake of a robust risk-on trade, the outlook has been much gloomier.

The municipal market needed this. That's the response some in the market had regarding last week's surge in new issuance and subsequent backup in yields.

The municipal market may be struggling to absorb the uptick in new supply, but muni bond mutual funds still saw their heaviest inflows since 2009.

The municipal market saw a surge in new-issue supply this week and weakening Treasuries that drove high-grades cheaper and gave tax-exempts a heavier tone.