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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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| More |
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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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Stop panicking over muni defaults! |
CNNMoney.com - Dec. 22, 2010 - By Cyrus Sanati
Meredith Whitney is raising the alarm on the fiscal imbalances at the state and municipal level, which is sending muni bond investors into a panic. But the fear of sweeping defaults is far overblown.
In the past two months, the $2.8 trillion municipal bond market has gone from being one of the most boring and predictable markets to one of the most volatile and talked about – it even made it onto 60 Minutes this week. But the recent selloff in this normally sleepy but important corner of Wall Street may be a bit overdone, as fears of cascading defaults look remote.
The excitement in munis first started in November, after prices took a steep dive as the government began its second round of quantitative easing. Investors sent prices down even further this month after it became clear that Congress would not be extending the Build America Bonds program.
Now Wall Street analyst Meredith Whitney has managed to add even more fuel to the fire, suggesting on national television this past Sunday that the market was set to experience billions of dollars of crippling defaults within the next 12 months.
Whitney, who gained recognition in the early days of the financial crisis by accurately predicting that Citigroup (C) would have to slash its dividend to conserve capital, believes she is again ahead of the curve in predicting troubles for the muni market.
"There is not a doubt in my mind that you will see a spate of municipal bond defaults," Whitney told veteran 60 Minutes anchor Steve Kroft. "You could see 50 to 100 sizable defaults, maybe more."
Whitney's comments resonated through the muni market, sparking mass selling in several major muni bond funds, like Blackrock's (BLK) Muni Intermediate Duration Fund, which closed down 4% on Monday. That's because investors in munis are normally quite risk averse – for them, Whitney's view on the market was akin to yelling "fire" in a crowded theater.
But while there may be smoke in the building, it's not likely to burn down. While there is no doubt that the fiscal situation of most state and local governments is precarious, there is still a myriad of safeguards in the muni market that will prevent the massive cascade of "sizable" defaults that Whitney believes is all but certain.
For the complete article.
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| Stuff to look at |
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| BondsOnline Advisor |
Income Security Recommendation January 2013 Issue.
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