Taylor Riggs

After a flurry of big competitive deals in the primary market this week, the secondary market took the attention Thursday morning as traders said there was inventory out in the secondary.

After positive reception on Illinois general obligation bonds Tuesday, the municipal bond market happily received Pennsylvania GOs Wednesday as traders said the deal was well received.

Pennsylvania auctioned $950 million of general obligation bonds, which Bank of America Merrill Lynch won, and traders said the deal was very well received.

The tax-exempt market focused on the largest deal of the week - $950 million of Pennsylvania general obligation bonds - expected to be auctioned later Wednesday morning.

Municipal bond traders allowed Illinois' competitive auction to steal their attention Tuesday as they noted the market was very quiet outside that big deal.

The tax-exempt market focused on the Illinois auction in the competitive market while traders said outside that big deal, the rest of the market was quiet.

The secondary market took a backseat Tuesday morning as traders waited for the week's primary issuance to kick off.

The tax-exempt market ended as much as two basis points firmer Monday though traders noted activity was thin. Traders eyed the two largest deals of the week expected to be auctioned in the competitive market Tuesday and Wednesday.

Tax-exempts continued to be very thinly traded Monday afternoon, continuing what has been a trend over the past few weeks.

The municipal bond market was very quiet Monday morning, typical after a three-day holiday weekend where traders struggled to put money to work.

The tax-exempt market ended the last trading session of March on a stronger tone with yields on municipal bond benchmark scales falling as much as two basis points Thursday.

The tax-exempt market ended stronger on this holiday-shortened week as minimal new issue supply pushed bond prices higher.

Trading in the tax-exempt market was busier than expected on a holiday-shortened session as dealers were rushing ahead of the early 2 p.m. close.

Standard & Poor's shook the municipal bond market by downgrading Puerto Rico Aqueduct and Sewer Authority to junk status in what was an otherwise quiet week.

The fallout of the downgrade of Puerto Rico's Aqueduct and Sewer Authority to junk status continued Wednesday afternoon as secondary trades continued to post losses.

With the majority of the week's primary offerings already priced, traders focused on the downgrade of Puerto Rico Aqueduct and Sewer Authority.

The primary market took all the focus in the municipal bond market Tuesday.

With limited primary pricing wires released into the market, muni traders said Tuesday’s activity was on par with Monday’s low trading volume.

Even with the majority of new issues expected to price Tuesday, municipal bond traders said the market still felt quiet on this holiday-shortened week.

Typical for a holiday-shortened week, the municipal bond market kept a low profile Monday as traders said there was very little trading volume.