Archive for August, 2009

Saint Louis Federal Reserve

Tuesday, August 25th, 2009

The Federal Reserve Bank of Saint Louis has a great package of monetary charts and statistics available on the web. It also comes with a little history via a discussion of the Federal Reserve's attempts to rein in excess reserve during the Depression. In the short piece the author concludes that ...

Corporate Bonds

Tuesday, August 25th, 2009

A brief post on corporate bonds: Spreads are unchanged to a nickel tighter. The tone was not quite ebullient but enthusiastic as a the Case Shiller report and the Conference Board confidence report instilled buyers with courage. When business did transact it was on the offered side of the market. Proctor and ...

Bond Market Close August 25 2009

Tuesday, August 25th, 2009

Prices of Treasury coupon securities are registering modest gains today. Once again the curve is flattening as the market improves with the larger gains achieved in the longer maturities. It has been particularly difficult to mine reasons for the price gains today and what I offer is a synthesis of about ...

Trade

Tuesday, August 25th, 2009

I exited my TBT at $ 47.48. I lost 82 cents times 1500 shares. Some one asked for my rationale. It was very faulty! I thought that supply would swamp the market. It has not and the trading account will hibernate for a bit.

Swaps and VOl and MBS

Tuesday, August 25th, 2009

Swaps spreads are mostly tighter across the yield curve. Two year spreads have narrowed 1 1/4 basis points to 40 1/2. Three year spreads have narrowed 1 3/4 basis points to 49 3/4.  Five year spreads are tighter by 1/2 basis point at 41 1/2. Seven year spreads are1/4 basis ...

Two Year Result

Tuesday, August 25th, 2009

The 2 year note was a tad sloppy with a tail of 1.2 basis points. The auction cleared at a yield of 1.119 percent. Prior to the auction the WI 2 year was trading at 1.107. The bid to cover ratio was 2.68 versus an average of 2.9 in the last ...

Two Note

Tuesday, August 25th, 2009

The Treasury will auction $ 42 billion 2 year notes in a little over an hour. They just auctioned a block of year bills and that came with a small 3/4 basis point tail. Some argue that the 2 year note will suffer the same fate as many players are on ...

Miscellany

Tuesday, August 25th, 2009

Agency spreads are a little tighter in the 2 year through 5 year sector and a little wider 6 years and out. One dealer reports a steady stream of sales from foreign investors in the 2015 through 2017 sector and that is weighing on spreads. Mortgages are about unchanged to swaps. Originators are ...

TIPS

Tuesday, August 25th, 2009

Tips spreads continue to narrow ( which means that in the aggregate investors are expecting lower levels of inflation) with 10 year spreads at 180 following a 184 close. Thirty year spreads have narrowed to 214 from 216 at the close. One dealer noted that in the previous overnight session there had ...

The Citi Never Sleeps

Tuesday, August 25th, 2009

By Caroline Hyde Aug. 25 (Bloomberg) -- Citigroup Inc. will sell 500 million pounds of bonds priced to yield 335 basis points over similar- maturity government debt, according to a person with knowledge of the transaction.