Bond volume

The light month for long-term municipal bond volume is another ripple effect of the new tax law and the issuance rush leading up to its enactment.

Issuers across the Southeast sold $68.5 billion of bonds in 2017, a 5.8% year-over-year decrease.

Issuers in the Midwest sold $82.98 billion of debt last year, a 5% drop from 2016.

Municipal bond volume across the eight-state Southwest region in 2017 fell 9% below its 2016 record.

Long-term issuance in the municipal market virtually matched its record high set in 2016, against the backdrop of tax reform that produced an end-of-year flood of volume, but the outlook for 2018 is less rosy.

Northeast municipal bond issuance was up 4% from 2016 to $121.3 billion.

Municipal bond volume evaporated in January, as the market felt the aftereffect of federal tax legislation that pulled issuance forward into 2017.

The supply-demand imbalance for muni investors is more acute than usual after issuers accelerated deals ahead of the new tax law.

Issuers rushing to close PABs and refunding deals propelled issuance past the single-month record set before 1986 tax reform.

The new tax law and imminent scarcity threaten to change market dynamics for muni buyers in 2018.

The year was marked by price fluctuations, yield curve flattening, spread compression, credit quality concerns, and other stresses.

Investors plan to make the most of the volume blitz and higher yields in the last month of the year, as issuers rush to market ahead of a sweeping tax law overhaul.

The possibility of the municipal market losing both advance refundings and private activity bonds brought a spike in issuance that's likely to extend into December.

More states and localities moved ahead with infrastructure financings in October, as issuers gained confidence the municipal tax exemption will remain in place.

Issuance of municipal bonds fell 33.9% to $26.7 billion compared to $40.4 billion in September 2016.

Volume shrank from August 2016, when the market was on a record-breaking run.

Regional bond issuance slipped by 31% in the first half and volume was down sharply in Florida.

Refunding deals were down substantially and new money volume also slipped.

A big drop-off in Texas and a decline in refundings took a bite out of the municipal bond business in the Southwest.

The region's slipping volume reflected a national trend.