Munis Unchanged to a Bit Firmer

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The municipal market was unchanged to slightly firmer yesterday. Traders said tax-exempt yields were flat to lower by one or two basis points.

"We're probably a little bit firmer, but it's pretty quiet, and only in spots," a trader in New York. "There's not that much movement overall. I'd say we're probably flat to better by a basis point or two. But there's definitely a bit of a firmer tone out there."

Trades reported by the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board yesterday showed gains. A dealer sold to a customer Bay Area Toll Authority 5.125s of 2047 at 5.39%, two basis points lower than where they were sold Monday. A dealer sold to a customer Port Authority of New York and New Jersey 4.5s of 2028 at 4.77%, down two basis points from where they traded Monday. A dealer sold to a customer insured Puerto Rico 5.25s of 2027 at 5.24%, even with where they were sold Monday.

Bonds from an interdealer trade of Los Angeles Unified School District 5s of 2024 yielded 4.72%, even with where they traded Monday. A dealer sold to a customer Texas' Tyler Independent School District 5s of 2034 at 5.01%, down one basis point from where they traded Monday. Bonds from an interdealer trade of New York State 5s of 2026 yielded 4.97%, even with where they were sold Monday.

The Treasury market showed gains yesterday. The yield on the benchmark 10-year note, which opened at 2.98%, finished at 2.83%. The yield on the two-year note finished at 0.91% after opening at 1.01%. The yield on the 30-year bond, which opened at 3.65%, finished at 3.52%.

In the new-issue market yesterday, JPMorgan priced $324.7 million of revenue refunding and improvement bonds for Dallas. The bonds mature from 2010 through 2029, with term bonds in 2034 and 2038. Yields range from 1.25% with a 3% coupon in 2010 to 5.47% with a 5.25% coupon in 2038. The bonds, which are callable at par in 2019, are insured by Assured Guaranty Corp. The underlying credit is rated A1 by Moody's Investors Service and A by Standard & Poor's.

Banc of America Securities LLC priced $228.1 million of certificates of participation for Oregon in two series. Bonds from the $213.4 million Series A mature from 2010 through 2028, with term bonds in 2033 and 2039. Yields range from 1.68% with a 3% coupon in 2011 to 5.30% priced at par in 2039. Bonds maturing in 2010 will be decided via sealed bid. The bonds are callable at par in 2019. The deal also contains a $15.4 million taxable component. The bonds mature from 2010 through 2023. The credit is rated Aa3 by Moody's and AA-minus by Standard & Poor's and Fitch Ratings.

The Florida State Board of Education competitively sold $200 million of public education capital outlay bonds to Barclays Capital with a true interest cost of 4.70%. The bonds mature from 2010 through 2032, with term bonds in 2034 and 2038. Yields range from 1.20% with a 2.75% coupon in 2010 to 5.03% with a 5% coupon in 2034. Bonds maturing in 2038 were not formally re-offered. The bonds are callable at 101 in 2018, declining to par in 2019. The underlying credit is rated Aa1 by Moody's, AAA by Standard & Poor's, and AA-plus by Fitch.

Triple-A rated Baltimore County competitively sold $98.3 million of bonds to JPMorgan with a TIC of 1.96%, in three series. Bonds from a $24.6 million series mature from 2009 through 2018, with yields ranging from 0.80% with a 4% coupon in 2010 to 2.61% with a 4% coupon in 2018. Bonds maturing in 2009 will be decided via sealed bid. Bonds from a $27.1 million series mature from 2009 through 2018, with yields ranging from 0.80% with a 3% coupon in 2010 to 2.61% with a 5% coupon in 2018. Bonds maturing in 2009 will be decided via sealed bid. And bonds from a $46.6 million series mature from 2009 through 2015, with yields ranging from 0.80% with a 5% coupon in 2010 to 1.96% with a 5% coupon in 2015. Bonds maturing in 2009 will be decided via sealed bid. None of the bonds are callable.

Wisconsin's Elmbrook School District competitively sold $31.2 million of general obligation school building and improvement bonds to Robert W. Baird & Co. with a TIC of 3.96%. The bonds mature from 2013 through 2028, with yields ranging from 1.75% with a 2.75% coupon in 2013 to 4.67% with a 4.5% coupon in 2028. Bonds maturing from 2023 through 2025 were not formally re-offered. The bonds, which are callable at par in 2019, are rated Aa1 by Moody's.

In economic data released yesterday, merchant wholesalers posted a 1.4% decrease in inventories in December, while sales dropped 3.6% in the month. Inventories of merchant wholesalers slid to $427.5 billion, following a revised 0.9% decrease to $433.7 billion in November. Meanwhile, sales of merchant wholesalers slid to about $336.1 billion, following November's revised 7.3% decrease to $348.5 billion. Economists polled by Thomson Reuters predicted a 0.7% decrease in wholesale inventories and a 3.5% decline in wholesale sales.

A slate of additional economic data will be released later this week. Tomorrow, initial jobless claims for the week ended Feb. 7 and continuing jobless claims for the week ended Jan. 31 will be released, along with January retail sales and December business inventories. On Friday, the preliminary University of Michigan consumer sentiment index will be released.

Economists polled by Thomson Reuters are predicting 610,000 initial jobless claims, 4.800 million continuing jobless claims, an 0.8% dip in retail sales, a 0.5% drop in retail sales excluding autos, an 0.8% decline in business inventories, and a 61.0 Michigan sentiment reading.

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