Markets

Municipal issuers in the Southwest sold $93.5 billion of debt in 2020, a year in which the coronavirus upended the way bond business is done.

The market took a much-needed breather Friday and U.S. Treasuries pared Thursday's losses to see the 10-year fall 12 basis points to 1.42% and the 30-year 17 basis points to 2.11%. Municipals were steady at 1.14% in 10 years and 1.82% in 30.

While issuance fell significantly from 2020, it was higher than January's and only the fifth time in 35 years that volume exceeded $30 billion in February.

Bills to expand the use of tax-advantaged bonds that are being reintroduced in the new Congress have favorable odds for being signed into law this year.

Taxable deals and refinancings fueled the 2020 volume spike as issuers adjusted to the coronavirus. The pandemic still looms over 2021.

S&P said the proposed budget represents a step in the right direction but it will weigh the final budget and other developments before acting on its BBB-minus rating.

Municipal bond mutual funds took notice of rate movements with Refinitiv Lipper reporting $37 million of inflows after 15 weeks of multi-billion inflows, the lowest since Dec. 2. High-yield funds took a big hit with $330 million of outflows.

BATA brings a refunding deal to market next week, buoyed by a financial position that stood up to the stresses of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In a wide-ranging conversation, Manulife Investment Management Global Chief Economist & Global Head of Macroeconomic Strategy Frances Donald discusses the COVID pandemic, inflation, how the markets may be misreading the Fed, why economic indicators may not be telling economists what they need to know, ESG and green spending, and the economy. Gary Siegel hosts. (35 minutes)

The deal was the largest in the authority’s history, with the lowest ever interest rate for one of its sales and netting a record-breaking $112 million in interest cost savings.