Alex Cristi /iStock via Getty Images Market Overview During the fourth quarter, the municipal bond market continued to rebound from the challenges of the first half of 2025. Record-setting bond issuance continued to be met by strong demand, enabling muni indexes to post positive returns for the quarter and the year. The S&P Municipal Bond High Yield Index gained 1.5% during the fourth quarter, whi...
Alex Cristi /iStock via Getty Images Market Overview During the fourth quarter, the municipal bond market continued to rebound from the challenges of the first half of 2025. Record-setting bond issuance continued to be met by strong demand, enabling muni indexes to post positive returns for the quarter and the year. The S&P Municipal Bond High Yield Index gained 1.5% during the fourth quarter, while the S&P Municipal Yield Index, which includes bonds across the quality spectrum, rose 1.7% and the S&P Short Duration Municipal Yield Index advanced 0.6%. Those indexes were up a respective 3.3%, 3.5% and 4.3% in full-year 2025. For context, the Bloomberg US Aggregate Bond Index gained 1.1% during the quarter and 7.3% in the year. 1 Market Able to Absorb Record Levels of Muni Issuance Though the pace of muni bond issuance eased somewhat in the fourth quarter, the $100 billion-plus of new issuance during the period was enough to drive the market to a new annual high of $580 billion, about 1.3% above the previous record set in 2024. It's worth noting that the vast majority of issuance during the year was new capital, with refunding activity accounting for only about 12%. 2 Lower levels of refunding transactions suggest fewer bonds are being called, which can help support valuations for the market as a whole. We were not surprised to see the municipal bond curve steepen considerably during 2025. The flood of issuance—high yield muni issuance in particular, given its long-dated nature, generally provides a steepening impulse to the yield curve—pushed long yields higher, although Federal Reserve policy rate cuts weighed on the short end of the muni curve. 3 The US Treasury curve also steepened over the year as term premia returned to the Treasury market after being mostly negative for nearly a decade. 4 There are a few factors we believe have contributed to the ongoing surge in issuance. After sitting on the sidelines during the 2022–23 rate-hike period, municipalities have a...
Anna Edwards, Guy Johnson, Tom Mackenzie and Mark Cudmore break down today's key themes for analysts and investors on "Bloomberg: The Opening Trade." (Source: Bloomberg)
Anna Edwards, Guy Johnson, Tom Mackenzie and Mark Cudmore break down today's key themes for analysts and investors on "Bloomberg: The Opening Trade." (Source: Bloomberg)
Investors interested in Occidental Petroleum (NYSE: OXY) should circle Feb. 18 on their calendar. That's the date the oil and gas giant will report its fourth-quarter and full-year earnings. It could serve as a catalyst for the company's stock price. Here's a look at what transpired the last time Occidental Petroleum reported earnings and what to expect this time around. That should help you decid...
Investors interested in Occidental Petroleum (NYSE: OXY) should circle Feb. 18 on their calendar. That's the date the oil and gas giant will report its fourth-quarter and full-year earnings. It could serve as a catalyst for the company's stock price. Here's a look at what transpired the last time Occidental Petroleum reported earnings and what to expect this time around. That should help you decide whether to buy the oil stock before its next earnings report or wait until after . Image source: Getty Images. Continue reading
(RTTNews) - Nippon Building Fund Inc. (NBFJF, 8951.T) reported Monday sequentially lower profit and revenues in the second half of fiscal 2025. Further, the company issued outlook for the first half and second half of fiscal 2026.
(RTTNews) - Nippon Building Fund Inc. (NBFJF, 8951.T) reported Monday sequentially lower profit and revenues in the second half of fiscal 2025. Further, the company issued outlook for the first half and second half of fiscal 2026.
Morning, I’m Louise Moon from Bloomberg UK’s breaking news team, bringing you up to speed on today’s top business stories. Keir Starmer will pledge to make AI chatbot providers take responsibility for moderating and preventing illegal content , in line with online safety laws. Those laws currently only apply to platforms where users share content with one another. “No platform gets a free pass,” t...
Morning, I’m Louise Moon from Bloomberg UK’s breaking news team, bringing you up to speed on today’s top business stories. Keir Starmer will pledge to make AI chatbot providers take responsibility for moderating and preventing illegal content , in line with online safety laws. Those laws currently only apply to platforms where users share content with one another. “No platform gets a free pass,” the PM is due to say in a speech. “Today we are closing loopholes that put children at risk.” It’s part of much wider efforts to improve safeguarding for children in the age of AI. The government may also implement a minimum age limit for children to access social media, like TikTok and Instagram, following similar laws in Australia. Last week, Starmer said he’ll enforce a law that bans the sexualization of people’s images without their consent, calling such content generated by the likes of Elon Musk’s Grok “disgusting and shameful.” What’s your take? Ping me on X , LinkedIn or drop me an email at lmoon13@bloomberg.net. Oh, and do subscribe to Bloomberg.com for unlimited access to trusted business journalism on the UK, and beyond. What We’re Watching House prices stayed steady in February, according to fresh Rightmove data , as an abundance of properties on the market strengthened the bargaining power of buyers. That said, buyers are also more cautious than a year ago, when people were rushing to complete before a change in stamp duty. It follows a surge in asking prices last month , as post-budget uncertainty eased. Pinewood Technologies is still confident about its long-term prospects following Apax’s withdrawal of a possible offer last Friday. The mid-cap, which makes software for car dealerships, says it’s in a good place to reach medium-term guidance. Global Catch-Up Why increasingly missing data is leaving global policymakers ‘flying blind’ . How Epstein donated to Harvard student group years after conviction. Malaysia’s King warns anti-corruption agency is on his rad...