Today's Bonds Pulse
Treasury yields dip as US‑Iran deal eases Middle‑East tension
Yields fell across the curve on June 15 after the United States and Iran announced a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. The two‑year rate slipped to 4.03% and the 10‑year to 4.43%, the lowest levels since early May, while market odds of a Fed hike by December fell to 60%.
Munis Mixed, UST Yields Rise Post-Jobs Report
Municipal bond prices were mixed on Wednesday as U.S. Treasury yields climbed following a stronger‑than‑expected jobs report, prompting market participants to reassess the timing of the Federal Reserve’s next rate cut. The two‑year muni‑UST spread slipped to 59% while longer‑dated spreads held near 60‑90%, reflecting investor preference for higher‑yielding long‑term munis. The Investment Company Institute reported nearly $3 billion of net inflows into municipal funds for the week ending Feb 4, and the new‑issue calendar featured a blend of negotiated and competitive deals across states. Analysts expect the Fed to hold rates steady, keeping the short‑end of the curve less attractive and reinforcing demand for longer‑dated municipal bonds.
Stunning Resilience
The 10‑year Treasury yield slipped 8 basis points after a trio of surprisingly strong labor‑market releases, settling just below the 4.20% technical barrier. January’s payrolls added 130,000 jobs, far exceeding the 70,000 forecast, while the unemployment rate fell to 4.3%...
American Dream Bonds Tumble
Municipal bonds financing New Jersey's American Dream megamall slumped nearly 18% after bondholders sued over a contested property assessment. The 7% PILOT bonds due 2050 traded at 78 cents, the lowest price since issuance in 2017, while similar 6.75% bonds...
EU Debt Issuance
If the EU were only able to issue its own debt, imagine the possibilities… Yeah, imagine if you gave EU bureaucrats the power to spend an astronomical amount in addition to its power to regulate https://t.co/KAqbSOG71R
Trump’s Trillion-Dollar Savings Claim Ignores Fixed-Rate Debt
Trump says lower rates would save "at least one trillion dollars per year." The federal government's entire annual net interest bill was $970 billion in fiscal 2025—and much of that is locked in at rates on previously issued debt that...
Credit Crunch: Investor Survey 1Q - Fed, Earnings, Tech Supply
In this episode, Mahesh Bhimalingam of Bloomberg Intelligence and Ashwin Palta of BNY Investments discuss the Bloomberg Intelligence 1Q26 Investor Survey, highlighting the continued resilience of credit and high‑yield markets despite recent tariff shocks and rate volatility. They examine why...
Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CMWAY) Q2 2026 Earnings Call Transcript
Commonwealth Bank of Australia reported a solid second‑half 2025 performance, with cash net profit climbing 6% and earnings per share increasing $0.19. The bank highlighted disciplined growth across its core retail and business segments despite cost‑of‑living pressures and global uncertainty....
MLPI: Supercharging MLPs For 15% Yields
NEOS MLP High Income ETF (MLPI) aims to deliver roughly 15% after‑tax yields by layering covered‑call premiums on a portfolio that mirrors the AMLP structure. The fund’s 100% return‑of‑capital distribution model defers taxes, boosting net income for investors. In addition...
MPV: High-Quality Fund But Expensive At This Time
Barings Participation Investors (MPV) is a high‑quality, income‑focused closed‑end fund delivering a 7.8% yield and solid dividend coverage. The fund’s floating‑rate private‑credit portfolio positions it to profit from future interest‑rate cuts. However, shares currently trade at a 21% premium to...
Ladder Capital: No Harm In Positioning Itself Conservatively
Ladder Capital (LADR) continues to position itself as a low‑volatility, conservatively managed CRE REIT, with management holding over 10% of the equity. The Q4 2025 report showed a miss on dividend coverage, yet the portfolio remains anchored by more than...
China Vanke Downsizes Serviced Apartment Business After Record Red Ink
China Vanke, a state‑backed developer, announced a record 82 billion yuan ($11.8 billion) loss for 2025. The loss prompted the company to shrink its serviced‑apartment business, scaling back operations in Shenzhen under the Port Apartment brand. The move is part of a...
FTSE 100 Live: Heathrow Traffic Record; Homebuilders Call for Help
UK’s FTSE 100 slipped 0.3% after a string of negative corporate news. Energy giant BP announced a suspension of its share buyback programme and heightened cost‑cutting targets to fund oil production, while Standard Chartered saw its finance chief Diego De Giorgi...
Voya Strategic Income Opportunities Fund Q4 2025 Commentary
Voya’s Strategic Income Opportunities Fund delivered outperformance in Q4 2025, surpassing its ICE BofA USD 3‑Month Deposit Index benchmark on a net asset value basis. The quarter was marked by heightened policy uncertainty due to a government shutdown, alongside market turbulence driven by a...
Thornburg Municipal Bond Funds Q4 2025 Commentary
U.S. fixed‑income markets ended 2025 on a positive note as Federal Reserve rate cuts and cooling inflation lifted bond prices. Thornburg's municipal bond funds posted mixed returns, with the AAA curve flattening and short‑term yields rising while longer maturities fell....
Tradeweb Markets: Growth Outlook Remains Robust
Tradeweb Markets posted 12.5% year‑over‑year revenue growth in Q4 2025 and expanded its adjusted EBITDA margin to 53.2%, driven by strong volume gains in rates and derivatives. Early 2026 data shows double‑digit daily volume growth, supporting the firm’s high‑teens growth...
Country Garden Shares Edge up After Regulators Hold Back on Fines over Debt Disclosures
Country Garden shares rose about 1.8% after the Shanghai Stock Exchange issued a circulated criticism for delayed debt disclosures but stopped short of imposing fines. The regulator flagged failures across three reporting periods and recorded disciplinary action against the firm...
Robinhood Markets, Inc. (HOOD) Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript
Robinhood held its Q4 2025 earnings call on February 10 2026, where CEO Vladimir Tenev and CFO Shiv Verma presented a solid financial rebound. Revenue rose 18% year‑over‑year to $1.2 billion and the net loss narrowed to $150 million, reflecting higher margin contributions from crypto...
BNY Mellon Global Fixed Income Fund Q4 2025 Commentary
The BNY Mellon Global Fixed Income Fund posted a 0.67% return in Q4 2025, lagging its Bloomberg Global Aggregate USD‑Hedged benchmark by 11 basis points. Japanese government bonds surged, pushing the 10‑year yield 42 bp above the 2% threshold for the first...
XOMA Royalty: Preferreds Still Offer Compelling Income Despite Call Risk
XOMA Royalty Corporation’s 8.375% cumulative preferred (XOMAO) trades at an attractive 8.3% yield, positioning it as a high‑income vehicle. The company added 24 royalty‑related assets in 2025, expanding its cash‑flow base from biotech milestones and licensing fees. Management highlights the...
Bristow Group: Strong Long-Term Setup, Near-Term Execution Still Key
Bristow Group (VTOL) is positioned for medium‑term growth, capitalising on robust offshore energy demand in Brazil, Africa and the Caribbean. Recent debt refinancing and stronger free‑cash flow have shored up its balance sheet, enabling planned share buybacks and a 2026...
Citadel and Cathie Wood Back Zero, a New Blockchain Designed for Traditional Finance
LayerZero, backed by Andreessen Horowitz and Sequoia, unveiled Zero—a new blockchain built for traditional finance. The network leverages zero‑knowledge proofs to claim 2 million transactions per second at sub‑cent costs, far outpacing Solana’s 100k TPS limit. Wall Street heavyweights including Citadel Securities,...
Google’s 100‑Year AI Bond: Ambitious or Foolhardy?
Google issuing a 100-year bond to fund AI capex. Remember JC Penney’s 100-year bond? Issued in 1997. Bankrupt in 2020. At least they got their basis back in coupons.
China’s US Treasurys Exit Could Limit Japan’s Military Spending
China is directing state‑owned banks to cut U.S. Treasury holdings to roughly $750 billion by 2025, halving its 2010 peak. The reduction removes a major buyer from the market, shifting the financing burden toward Japan, the world’s largest foreign‑reserve holder. Japan’s...
Oxbridge Re Unveils New Tokenized Reinsurance Sidecar Securities with 20% & 42% Return Targets
Oxbridge Re Holdings has launched two new tokenized reinsurance sidecar tranches, T20-2027 and T42-2027, targeting 20% and 42% annual returns. The securities are issued on the Solana blockchain, replacing the earlier Avalanche platform. Prior token offerings delivered strong performance, including...
Arbol and Pollen Systems Partner on Parametric Product for Agricultural & Climate Challenges
Arbol and Pollen Systems, backed by Esri and Omniris, have launched a parametric insurance product that fuses AI‑driven risk models with real‑time satellite, drone and field data. The solution leverages Esri’s GIS platform to deliver location‑aware insights throughout the policy...
Bonds Taking a Pre-NFP Lead-Off
Bond yields pulled back toward the 4.1‑4.2% band after weak retail‑sales data, reversing a brief flirtation with the 4.30% ceiling on the 10‑year Treasury. The market is now pricing in a softer labor outlook ahead of the February non‑farm payrolls...
BP Finally Admits Debt Exceeds $50 Billion, Not $22 Billion
Regular readers know we at @Opinion had flagged BP had far more debt than the company's prefered metric (~$22 bn). Look at net debt + hybrids + leases + off-balance sheet items and it's >$50 bn. Now, BP acknowledges the issue...
Global Warming Expected to Drive Structural Growth in ILS Spreads: Solidum Partners
Solidum Partners says global warming will structurally expand ILS spreads. As natural disaster frequency and severity increase, traditional reinsurers face capital constraints under Solvency II, limiting their capacity. ILS instruments, being event‑specific and fully collateralized, can absorb tail risk, leading investors...
Earn 12‑18% Risk‑Free with Nigerian Treasury Bonds
TREASURY BILLS & GOVERNMENT BONDS Low-risk, government-backed securities. In Nigeria, buy FGN Savings Bonds or Treasury Bills through the CBN portal or apps like Chaka, Bamboo, or Cowrywise (minimum ₦10,000). Returns typically 12-18% annually. Other African countries offer similar products through their...
Software Selloff Hits BDCs, Creditors May Be at Risk
“Business Development Companies” have been hammered in the recent software selloff. Alphaville dug into the data of some of the biggest ones to find out if software creditors are in trouble. https://t.co/ybVLHwLoCi https://t.co/AMQPhflF5J
EM Debt Strength Holds as DM Policy Noise Grows>
VanEck’s Emerging Markets Bond ETF (EMBX) posted a 5.56% 30‑day yield and outperformed both its benchmark and U.S. Treasuries in January 2026, driven by strong local‑currency exposure and carry. The fund’s portfolio now holds 48% hard‑currency sovereigns, with notable additions...
TLT's 15-Year Low ATR Signals Potential Breakout
$TLT : The Average True Range (orange) is now the lowest in over 15 years. Something has to give. Might the plummeting @truflation readings be a clue to which direction a breakout might occur? https://t.co/0pEENxYpXs
IG Spreads Widen Despite Equity Rally, Hinting Supply Worries
IG credit spreads wider +4bps from late-Jan yet HY wider by only +2bps. Last two days have seen +2.5% equity upside that statistically should mean IG spreads -2bps. May be nothing, may be worries about supply. A "balanced" IG...
FA at 30: How Dim Sum Bonds Unlocked Liquidity without Opening China’s Capital Account
Nearly two decades after China Development Bank issued its first RMB‑denominated bond in Hong Kong, dim sum bonds have become a cornerstone of offshore liquidity. The initial issuance was modest, but it demonstrated that Chinese sovereign and policy banks could...
Weak Data Fuels Bonds, 15% Growth Now Unrealistic
Soft retail sales, ECI flat for quarter and ADP jobs figures on the low end of expectations. Good data for the bond market, but that 15% GDP growth rate looks out of reach.
U.S. Large Caps Lead Inflows; High‑Yield Bonds Lose Ground
U.S. large caps dominated inflows last week, followed by global equities and consumer cyclicals ... high yield bonds saw most outflows, but broader fixed income universe was still positive @DataArbor https://t.co/l0soXmQF4S
U.S. Treasury Rates Weekly Update for February 6, 2026
U.S. Treasury yields slipped across the board for the week ending February 6, 2026. The benchmark 30‑year rate fell 0.02 percentage points, while the 10‑year yield dropped 0.04 points to 4.22 %. The 3‑year Treasury rate settled at 3.57 %, reflecting a modest broad‑based decline. These...
Record Wave of Large Bankruptcies Hits Weekly
How is this a healthy development? At least SIX big companies (liabilities >=$50M) have filed for bankruptcy EVERY WEEK during 3-wk period that began Jan 10, a level matched a handful of times since the turn of the century…last week alone...
Alphabet's Sterling Bond Hits Record £4.5bn Demand
#Alphabet sterling bond raises a record £4.5 bn, with £24 bn in bids. They may start borrowing on behalf of Bessent if it continues like this $GOOG
Volatility Laundering in Private Credit
Private credit has trailed public credit since 2022, offering lower liquidity, weaker credit quality, higher industry concentration and higher borrower costs. By avoiding daily mark‑to‑market, private credit managers can "volatility launder" returns, presenting artificially low volatility and inflated Sharpe ratios....
Dollar Steadies, Yen Rebounds; US 10‑yr Dips Below
The greenback is a little firmer against the G10 currencies but the yen as it consolidates yesterday's sharp losses. JGB yields are softer. Meanwhile this could be only the 2nd session since mid-Jan that the US 10-year yield...
Equities Edge up as Dollar Slips, Data Awaits
Tuesday: Equity futures slightly higher, dollar weaker and treasury yields nearly unchanged. Retail sales, Employment Cost Index and Import prices out today.
AM Resilience After Overnight Weakness
Overnight Treasury markets experienced a sharp, high‑volume move despite a relatively narrow price range. The volatility was triggered by news that Chinese regulators asked banks to limit their exposure to U.S. Treasuries. Domestic traders quickly digested the information, and by...
Tether Would Rank 17th in US Treasury Holdings
Who is the world's largest holder of US Treasuries? 🥇 Japan 🥈 United Kingdom 🥉 China But here's the wildest part - if Tether were a country, it would be the 17th largest holder of US Treasuries https://t.co/JoaE6JzFI9
Macron Urges EU to Adopt Eurobonds Now
Emmanuel Macron: « Now is the time for the EU to launch a joint borrowing capacity, through eurobonds. » https://t.co/NqqbjjecXk
Private Credit Defaults
The episode dissects private‑credit defaults, arguing that most defaults are driven by borrower‑specific (idiosyncratic) factors rather than systemic risk, which the media often exaggerates for clicks. Data from the Cliffwater Direct Lending Index shows realized losses remain well below historic...
Alphabet Launches 100‑year GBP Bond, Eyes Currency Debasement
#Alphabet to issue 100-year GBPSterling bond after having issued 50-year $17.5 bn USD bond in November. Also plns to issue CHF bond. They're betting further currency debasement #forex
IRRBB Management in Emerging Market and Developing Economies: The Role of Derivatives in Supporting Financial Stability and Economic Development
Interest rate risk in the banking book (IRRBB) is emerging as a top priority for banks and regulators across emerging market and developing economies (EMDEs). Monetary tightening and persistent macro‑volatility are making balance‑sheet exposures more fragile, exposing the limits of...
DClimate Launches Tyche to Bring On-Chain Transparency to Catastrophe Reinsurance
Decentralised climate platform dClimate has launched Tyche, a blockchain‑based marketplace that tokenises catastrophe reinsurance using ERC‑20 assets. The platform recorded $20 million of notional risk during last year’s hurricane season and relies on dClimate’s AI‑driven Aegis engine for real‑time pricing and...
Downing Street Resignations Trigger Bond Market Jitters
UK bond markets reacted sharply on Monday after a series of high‑profile Downing Street resignations, with the 10‑year gilt yield climbing to 4.62% – a ten‑basis‑point surge that set a three‑month high. The departures, including communications chief Tim Allan and...