Municipal bond traders will be keeping their eyes on several big deals on Thursday as market activity looks to slow down ahead of upcoming holiday week. Connecticut, Hawaii, Louisiana, and Clark Co., Nev., all have large sales scheduled. Muni bond yields were weaker in early trading.
Primary
- J.P. Moran Securities is pricing $550 million Connecticut general obligation bonds in three series. The $240 million Series F green bonds will mature from 2015 to 2034, while the $60 million Series G portion will mature from 2028 to 2031, and Series H, which totals $250 million, will mature from 2016 to 2026. The bonds are rated AA3 by Moody's Investors Service and AA by Standard & Poor's, Fitch Ratings and Kroll Bond Rating Agency.
- Louisiana will offer $199.99 million of general obligation bonds in a competitive sale in two series, $160.09 million Series 2014-D-1 and $39.9 million Series 2014-D-2. The bonds are rated Aa2 by Moody's and AA by both S&P and Fitch.
- Clark County, Nev., is offering for competitive sale $100 million of limited tax general obligation flood control bonds, additionally secured with pledged revenues. The bonds are rated Aa1 by Moody's and AA by S&P.
- Bank of America Merrill Lynch will price the city and county of Honolulu's $138 million water system revenue bonds. The issue consists of $94 million tax-exempt Series 2014A and $44 million taxable Series 2014B. The issue is rated Aa2 by Moody's and AA-plus by S&P.
Secondary
Municipal bond yields are lower, with the both benchmark 10-year GO and 30-year GO off one to three basis points, according to the preliminary read of Municipal Market Data's triple-A scale.
Treasury prices are higher with the two-year note yield down one basis point at 0.54% from Wednesday's market close. The 10-year's yield lost four basis points to 2.32% and the 30-year fell four basis points to 3.03%.
On Wednesday, the muni to Treasury ratio declined. The 10-year muni to Treasury ratio closed lower at 92.8% (from 94.8% on Tuesday and 93.6% on Monday) and the 30-year muni to Treasury ratio closed lower at 101.1% (from 101.6% on Tuesday and from 101% on Monday.)
Stock prices are lower. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is down about 60 points, the S&P 500 is off around five points and the NASDAQ is off nearly 15 points.
Economic Indicators
- The Philadelphia Federal Reserve releases its November manufacturing survey.
- The National Association of Realtors reports existing home sales data for October.
- The Conference Board releases leading indicators for October.
Treasury Department
- Treasury details its three- and six-month bill auctions.
- Treasury announces re-opened two-year floating-rate note auction details.
- Treasury announces two-, five-, and seven-year note auction details.
- Treasury auctions $13 billion of re-opened 10-year TIPS.
