Secondary bond market

The rise of machine learning. Continued growth of electronic trading. Intensifying automation. Stephanie Sparvero, Global Head of BVAL Evaluated Pricing at Bloomberg, talks about these issues and more in how the muni market is charting a changing muni landscape. Lynne Funk hosts. (30 minutes)

A repricing of Illinois GOs saw the bonds bumped by 12 to 20 basis points from Tuesday's preliminary pricing wires and 17 to 25 basis points from Monday's price talk.

A reversal of fund flows and the arrival of the economic aid for states and local governments helped boost the market's morale ahead of $10 billion in new-issues supply this week.

The junk-rated school district won an upgrade and saw its secondary bond market spreads narrow as it expects to pocket about $1.8 billion in new aid.

Inflows return, stimulus set, new deals on fire — the municipal market reaped all the benefits. Initial jobless claims dropped more than expected in the week, as reopening continued slowly, but the total remains higher than any week before the COVID crisis hit.

The Investment Company Institute reported outflows from municipal bond mutual funds but inflows into exchange-traded funds. The February consumer price index came in as expected, while the core was below expectations, and analysts expect bigger rises ahead.

Despite the recent outflows and volatility of the Treasury market, municipal bonds have and should continue to outperform as stimulus from Washington provides some respite.

With the reset in yields in the rear view, valuations — especially relative to Treasury — will likely support continued robust demand.

Refinitiv Lipper reported $600 million of outflows from municipal bond mutual funds as the market correction caught up. High-yield funds lost a massive $722 million after $330 million a week prior.

A year after COVID disrupted the markets, Sylvia Yeh and Scott Diamond, co-heads of fixed income at Goldman Sachs Asset Management discuss their strategies for 2021 and the important role of retail, consider the new regime in Washington, and contemplate where ESG fits into their portfolio as the muni market incorporates the burgeoning investor interest in it. Lynne Funk hosts (35 minutes)