Buy side

The Bond Buyer's muni bond indexes were mostly stable in the week ending May 1, as Treasuries continued firming.

Municipal bond fund flows turned negative for the week ending April 30, as funds reported $26.38 million of outflows.

Tax-exempt money market fund outflows slowed to $3.48 billion as total net assets dropped to $257.62 billion in the week ended April 28, according to The Money Fund Report, a service of iMoneyNet.com.

Investment advisors gave their take Tuesday at the Milken Institute Global Conference on investments at a time when questions are rising about the status of the economic cycle.

An $834 million Pennsylvania general obligation sale may get plenty of attention this week in a market with little else to focus on, as volume reverts back to 2014's skimpy norm after inching up last week.

Municipal mutual funds reported inflows increased to $244.26 million in the week ended April 23 from $74.03 million of inflows the week before.

Tax-exempt money market funds reported losses of $5.61 billion – the largest decline in assets in a year – as total net assets fell to $261.10 billion in the week ended April 21, according to The Money Fund Report, a service of iMoneyNet.com.

The Bond Buyer's muni bond indexes were mostly stable in the week ending April 10, as Treasuries softened.

New issuance of more than $7 billion is expected to arrive in the primary this week, as Illinois tests the market's appetite for a second time this month with its general obligation credit — this time a $750 million sale that will be joined by large financings from issuers in Texas and New Jersey.

Tax-exempt money market funds reported losses of $3.67 billion in the week ended April 14 as total net assets fell to $266.72 billion, according to The Money Fund Report, a service of iMoneyNet.com. The losses come on the heels of the prior week's inflows of $1.58 billion.

The spread between MCDX's Series 22 and Series 21 presents investors with another way to short Puerto Rico and the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority bonds.

To grow and expand its platform of services, retirement and financial services provider TIAA-CREF has acquired Nuveen Investments in a $6.25 billion transaction expected to be completed by the end of 2014.

With volume expected to return to its recent paltry levels this week, the municipal market will look to a $321 million sale of North Carolina general obligation bonds for direction.

Municipal funds reported the biggest inflows in seven weeks, as interest rate concerns faded and investors sought high yields.

The Bond Buyer's muni bond indexes strengthened in the week ending April 3, as Treasury yields declined.

Tax-exempt money market funds increased total net assets by $1.58 billion to $270.38 billion in the week ended April 7, reversing recent weeks’ outflows, according to The Money Fund Report, a service of iMoneyNet.com.

Municipal fund flows rebounded the week ending April 9, as funds reported the largest amount of inflows since the start of 2014.

Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. launched a fund designed to avoid risk, protecting investors’ capital by focusing on high-grade intermediate maturities.

While Detroit and Puerto Rico make the headlines, a cautious and conservative approach is the best bet, according to two municipal bond portfolio managers, whose strategies are representative of about three-quarters of municipal fund managers.

An uptick in volume this week will bring a handful of sizable deals to the primary market, but won't be enough to relieve the supply shortage that has prevailed so far in 2014, municipal traders said.