The municipal market was unchanged to slightly weaker Friday.
"Munis are largely unchanged to maybe slightly weaker on the long end, in sympathy with Treasuries, but there hasn't been a lot of trading," a trader in New York said.
The Treasury market showed some losses Friday. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which opened at 4.00%, finished at 4.10%. The yield on the two-year note was quoted near the end of the session at 2.71% after opening at 2.60%.
"Not a whole lot going on," a trader in Los Angeles said. "Sort of a quiet end to a week that wasn't so quiet. But we're a little bit weaker, maybe a basis point or two, at most."
In economic data released Friday, durable goods orders rose 0.8% in June, after a revised 0.1% increase in the previous month. Economists polled by IFR Markets had predicted a 0.4% drop.
Durable goods orders excluding transportation climbed 2.0% in June, after a revised 0.5% decline the previous month. Economists polled by IFR had predicted a 0.2% decrease.
Sales of new single-family homes fell 0.6% to a 530,000 seasonally adjusted annual rate in June. The June figure came after a revised 533,000 rate in May, a 1.7% drop, originally reported as a 2.5% decrease to 512,000. IFR Markets' poll of economists had predicted a 505,000 sales level for April.
The University of Michigan's final July consumer sentiment index reading was 61.2, compared to a preliminary July 56.6 reading and the final June 56.4 reading. Economists polled by IFR had predicted a 56.4 reading for the index.
This week, a slate of economic data will be released, highlighted Friday by the July non-farm payrolls report. Tomorrow, the July consumer confidence index will be released, followed Thursday by the advance second-quarter gross domestic product, initial jobless claims for the week ended July 26, continuing jobless claims for the week ended July 19, and the July Chicago purchasing managers index. On Friday, in addition to the payrolls report, June construction spending, the July Institute for Supply Management business activity composite index, and the July unemployment rate will be released.
Economists polled by IFR Markets are predicting a 72,000 decline in non-farm payrolls. They are also forecasting a 50.0 reading for the consumer confidence index, a 2.4% annual rate for GDP, 398,000 initial jobless claims, 3.150 million continuing jobless claims, a 49.0 Chicago PMI reading, a 0.4% dip in construction spending, a 49.2 reading in the ISM index, and an unemployment rate of 5.6%.
Activity in the new-issue market was light Friday.
