Market Post: Investors Gear up for a Heavy Calendar

A bump in anticipated primary volume should spur the municipal market for the first week of December.

But while the market gears up for the coming deals, Monday's session has started flat. The limited activity traders see comes mostly from small situational deals in the secondary market, a trader in New York said.

"It's extremely quiet," she said. "Everyone's gearing up for some of the larger deals. The primary has been the focus. There's a little bit of customer activity, a continuation of last week," when the secondary took over after new issues were "out of the way."

This week, an estimated $8.36 billion of new volume is expected to arrive, paced by two New Jersey Transportation Trust Fund Authority deals that total more than $1.2 billion. Last week, a revised $6.75 billion reached the market, according to Thomson Reuters.

A retail order period is expected to be held Monday for $829.2 million of Texas Transportation Commission highway improvement general obligation bonds. Wells Fargo Securities will hold pricing for institutions on Tuesday.

An early market read shows that tax-exempt yields have weakened slightly. Those yields beyond six years on the curve are flat to one basis point higher.

On Friday, following almost a week-long rally, the 10-year yield was unchanged at 1.47%, its record low set Wednesday, for a third consecutive trading session, according to the Municipal Market Data scale read.

The 30-year yield also held steady at 2.47%, its record low, for the third straight day. The two-year finished steady at 0.30% for the 45th consecutive trading session.

The Treasury yield curve opened the week higher across the curve Monday. The benchmark 10-year yield has increased three basis points to 1.65%.

The two-year yield has ticked up one basis point to 0.27%, and the 30-year yield has leapt four basis points to 2.85%.

In economic news, the Institute for Supply Management reported Monday that the overall economy expanded for the 42nd consecutive time, while the manufacturing sector contracted following two months of growth.

The ISM index fell to 49.5 in November from 51.7 in October, according to the ISM's monthly report on business. An index reading above 50 suggests an expanding economy; a reading below 50 indicates a slowing economy.

Economists surveyed by Thomson Reuters expected the ISM index would slide to 51.3.

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