Markets

The municipal market can expect $4.68 billion in new issuance this week, with a half dozen deals above $250 million contributing to volume and putting the projected total around the average for the year.

All of The Bond Buyer’s long-term weekly yield indexes declined this week, powered by light issuance and predictions of strong seasonal cash inflows.

Market participants say buyers will face slim pickings as they attempt to reinvest a flood of cash from called or maturing bonds during the summer reinvestment season.

Bank credit facilities used to roll over variable-rate debt have so far been up to the task of handling the initial wave of enhancements that has been expiring this year.

Investors continue to withdraw money from municipal bond mutual funds. Muni bond funds that report their flows weekly had net outflows of $296 million in the week ended May 25, according to Lipper FMI.

The municipal market can expect $2.5 billion of new issuance in a holiday-shortened week, including two sizeable New York deals, but that’s not enough to keep up with last week’s revised $4.3 billion total, which was up from a revised $3.9 billion the week before, according to Ipreo LLC and The Bond Buyer.

Tax-free money market funds took in $82.8 million and settled with $309.12 billion in the week ended May 23, according to the Money Fund Report, a service of iMoneyNet.com.

For portfolio managers of municipal bond funds, the past several months haven’t been for the faint of heart. Still, muni fund managers report mixed experiences in riding out the prolonged flood of outflows.