Mortgages

With all eyes on Friday’s employment report, since several additional strong months of gains are needed for the Federal Reserve to be comfortable announcing a tapering of its asset purchases, Wednesday’s news could signal trouble.

With municipal yields at exceedingly low absolute levels, the spread tightening between credits also continues.

Negotiated deals were repriced to lower yields while competitive deals saw levels coming in through triple-A benchmarks. High-grade benchmarks were little changed.

Florida’s unemployment rate rose 0.1% to 5.0% in June while gaining more than 69,300 jobs, as active job seekers look to rejoin the workforce.

The city, which Moody's downgraded last week, is appealing a Nassau County judge's ruling that has it on the hook for $131 million over a dispute with a developer.

With better-than-expected payrolls, economists still caution full recovery is a ways away. Muni participants are closely following how the Fed's action — or inaction — will affect the municipal market going forward.

Economists are bracing for another volatile monthly jobs report and some forecasters are tweaking their models ahead of Friday's data.

It could take the nation, heavily influenced by New York and California, 18 months to return to full employment, Fitch Ratings said.

Strong technicals have been the theme, and with federal aid and better-than-expected tax receipts coming in, issuers are not tapping the market as much as investors would hope.

A disappointing jobs report gives credence to the Federal Reserve’s concern about slack in the labor market.