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| BondsOnline.com: instant access to and extensive coverage of over 3.5 million stocks, bonds, indexes and other securities covering major and emerging markets and exchanges across the globe. |
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| Bonds Online |
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| 5/10/2013Market Performance |
| Municipal Bonds |
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S&P National Bond Index
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3.00% |
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S&P California Bond Index
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2.96% |
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S&P New York Bond Index
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3.13% |
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S&P National 0-5 Year Municipal Bond Index
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0.70% |
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| S&P/BGCantor US Treasury Bond |
400.09 |
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| Income Equities: |
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| Preferred Stocks |
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S&P U.S. Preferred Stock Index
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848.03 |
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S&P U.S. Preferred Stock Index (CAD)
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636.26 |
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S&P U.S. Preferred Stock Index (TR)
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1,701.05 |
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S&P U.S. Preferred Stock Index (TR) (CAD)
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1,276.26 |
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| REITs |
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S&P REIT Index
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174.07 |
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S&P REIT Index (TR)
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425.30 |
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| MLPs |
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S&P MLP Index
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2,469.58 |
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S&P MLP Index (TR)
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5,428.50 |
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See Data
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Come On Aboard The Bond Bandwagon |
Forbes.com - Feb. 26, 2010 - by Matthew Craft
Large fixed-income investors have turned more optimistic about corporate credit. No bubble here.
Fixed-income investors are supposed to be a grumpy lot, a group of creditors obsessed with worst-case scenarios and more concerned about companies covering their loan payments than their ability to prosper.
Fitch Ratings’ biannual survey of money managers, insurance executives and bankers released on Thursday shows that bond and loan investors are more optimistic about corporate credit now than in the past two years. This rosy reading on bonds comes after a 12-month period in which companies with the weakest balance sheets returned 56%.
A majority of the 109 institutional investors surveyed expect the credit climate to improve this year. In general, that means they see companies shedding debt burdens and posting stronger sales to cover interest payments and that defaults will continue to fall.
They are, in the words of the Fitch report, “not just less negative but modestly bullish,” and especially keen on financial firms, energy companies and manufacturers. That jibes with the view of 66% of those surveyed that a weak dollar would boost the economy. Because commodities like oil are priced in dollars, a cheaper greenback pushes oil prices higher and also makes it easier for U.S. manufacturers to sell their wares abroad.
Even after corporate bond markets posted eye-popping gains last year, helping gaps between corporate and government borrowing costs known as spreads diminish, a majority of those surveyed said they expect spreads to fall further: 65% see risky speculative-grade spreads getting tighter; 61% expect the same for higher-quality investment-grade spreads.
At a 9% yield, corporate bonds labeled speculative-grade, or “junk,” pay 6.65 percentage points more than similar Treasury notes, according to a Bank of America Merrill Lynch index. That’s an enormous improvement from a year ago when they paid 19% for a 17 point spread. Less risky investment-grade bonds pay 4.5%, compared with 8% a year ago.
Tighter spreads encourage companies to bring new bonds to the market. A flurry of speculative-grade sales from auto-supplier ArvinMeritor ( ARM - news - people ), data center provider Equinix ( EQIX - news - people ) and heavy equipment maker Oshkosh ( OSK - news - people )were wrapped up on Friday. Bank of America managed the ArvinMeritor and Oshkosh sales.
Even with their newfound optimism, fixed-income investors still see plenty of risks. They say the greatest threats are, in order: unforeseen consequences of proposed financial regulation; geopolitical risk (a category so broad it could include Greece defaulting on its debts or Israel attacking Iran); housing market turmoil; and relying on foreign buyers to finance U.S. debts. Nearly 80% said a second stimulus package on top of the $787 billion one passed last year would either prove harmful or have no effect on credit markets.
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| Stuff to look at |
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| BondsOnline Advisor |
Income Security Recommendation January 2013 Issue.
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