Jessica Lerner is a senior reporter and buy-side specialist for Bond Buyer where she writes the daily market column, the monthly volume story and longer trend stories. Prior to this, she worked as a beat reporter at two Connecticut newspapers. She earned her master's in business and economics reporting from the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism and her bachelor's in journalism and statistics from the University of Connecticut.
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The recent firmness in the market has been "much appreciated," said Shannon Rinehart, senior portfolio manager of municipal debt at Columbia Threadneedle Investments.
May 8 -
Muni yields remain attractive, said Tom Kozlik, managing director, head of public policy and municipal strategy at HilltopSecurities.
May 7 -
Following the Federal Reserve's meeting this week, where the Fed is expected to hold rates, Chairman Jerome Powell will try to serve up a "nothingburger," said Cooper Howard, a fixed income strategist at Charles Schwab.
May 6 -
Focus was on the primary market last week, with Birch Creek reporting that one dealer estimated that 90% of the focus earlier in the week was on new issues.
May 5 -
Hilltop currently ranks 19th year-to-date among managing underwriters of municipal bonds, underwriting $1.2 billion in 53 issues.
May 5 -
"For munis, a strong jobs report should reverse recent credit spread widening, while a weak jobs report should keep credit spreads around current levels," said BofA strategists.
May 2 -
April's volume was revised upward to $45.825 billion in 727 issues, up 2% from $44.945 billion in 707 issues in the same period in 2024, according to revised LSEG data.
May 1 -
The muni market is coming out of oversold conditions, said David Litvack, a tax-exempt strategist at BofA.
April 30 -
Compensation played a role in the departures, sources said.
April 30 -
April's volume was $41.178 billion in 660 issues, down 8.4% from $44.945 billion in 707 issues in the same period in 2024, according to LSEG data. This is still above the 10-year average of $35.436 billion.
April 30 -
The well-known muni strategist said he's pursuing "more market-related opportunities."
April 29 -
Some of the issuance stems from project finance largely "drying up" because of where rates are, said Jennifer Johnston, senior vice president and director of research, municipal bonds, for Franklin Templeton Fixed Income.
April 29 -
The market has seen seven consecutive weeks of outflows. "This is not surprising given that retail investors tend to follow performance," said Daryl Clements of AllianceBernstein.
April 28 -
"Easing tariffs, a slowing economy and an improved supply/demand outlook for munis in May and onward should drive muni market pricing going forward," BofA strategists said.
April 25 -
Investors pulled $397.4 million from municipal bond mutual funds in the week ended Wednesday, following $1.258 billion of outflows the prior week.
April 24 -
The escalating dispute between the prestigious issuer and the White House is spooking some bond holders and creating opportunities for others.
April 24 -
The market is still in a negative technical period, said Chris Eustance, a portfolio manager at Morgan Stanley Investment Management.
April 23 -
Muni yields may "continue to stay elevated due to supply and demand factors," rather than concerns over credit quality, said Cooper Howard, a fixed income strategist at Charles Schwab.
April 22 -
Monday saw a reversal from the past week as muni yields rose three to 10 basis points, depending on the curve. Despite this, Monday's losses were not enough to erase last week's gains as yields are still lower than they were two weeks ago.
April 21 -
Investors pulled $1.258 billion from municipal bond mutual funds in the week ending Wednesday, following $3.302 billion of outflows the prior week, according to LSEG Lipper data.
April 17
