Archive for October, 2013

Corporate Bond Update

Thursday, October 17th, 2013

I wrote yesterday about a $3 billion deal for Wrigley (the gum folks). It was a multi tranche offering and it priced 25 basis points rich to the initial price talk. One corporate bond aficionado with whom I converse noted that the book was actually $21 billion. The issue is ...

Fed San Francisco on Labor Market Momentum

Wednesday, October 16th, 2013

The Federal Reserve has made it crystal clear that the state of the labor market is the principal variable that it observes as it decides to taper or not to taper. The FOMC has stated that it will enjoy a state of ecstasy when there is sustainable improvement in the ...

Corporate Bonds

Wednesday, October 16th, 2013

The corporate bond market remains quite firm at levels very close to the tightest spreads since humankind learned to walk erect. My corporate bond source (a salesman who has memorized the 40 percent times table) reports that the IG 21 trades around 76/77 and that is about 5 basis points ...

Bill Market Update

Wednesday, October 16th, 2013

In the previous post I noted the disarray in the T bill market. With an agreement seemingly in hand and Speaker Boehner experiencing a Profiles in Courage moment by allowing an up or down vote on the Senate bill, those bills which had suffered the worst carnage have recovered significantly. ...

Cognitive Dissonance

Wednesday, October 16th, 2013

Cognitive dissonance reigns in the markets. Equity futures are up handsomely while the Treasury bill market is pricing in Armageddon. The yield on the October 24 T bill has jumped some 20 basis points and rests currently around 65 basis points. Dealer selling led the collapse yesterday as balance sheet ...

More Debt Ceiling Woes

Wednesday, October 16th, 2013

While you were sleeping the CME hiked margin requirements for clearing US $ swaps. The move reflects heightened concerns about the result of the debt ceiling impasse. The Hong Kong Exchange, in a similar move, had changed collateral levels several days ago. http://www.ft.com/intl/fastft

ObamaCare Roll Out Through Liberal Prism

Tuesday, October 15th, 2013

Ezra Klein is a very left writer for the Washington Post. If a policy proposition is left of center, he is waving the flag for the initiative. It appears, though, that this gentleman is at his core an intellectually honest fellow because in this recent piece at the WaPo he ...

Bill Turmoil

Tuesday, October 15th, 2013

The Treasury Bill market is a shambles and has been in a state of flux as the dysfunction in Washington increases apprehension that the unthinkable might happen and the US might just amble aimlessly into a technical default. I guess a technical default is one in which you personally do ...

Via Bloomberg News: No Deal in Senate

Tuesday, October 15th, 2013

(BN) *COONS SAYS REID ANNOUNCED TO SENATORS THERE'S `NO DEAL' +------------------------------------------------------------------------------+ BN 10/15 18:48 *SENATOR COONS OF DELAWARE SAYS `NO DEAL' TO END FISCAL IMPASSE BN 10/15 18:48 *SENATE DEMOCRAT COONS SAYS REID-MCCONNELL TALKS HAVE ENDED +------------------------------------------------------------------------------+ *COONS SAYS REID ANNOUNCED TO SENATORS THERE'S `NO DEAL' 2013-10-15 18:48:10.29 GMT --STEVE GEIMANN -0- Oct/15/2013 18:48 GMT

For Lepidoperists Only

Tuesday, October 15th, 2013

Good morning. The 10 year part of the Treasury Curve appears to be quite cheap as a new trading week begins. The 5year/10 year curve trades at about 127 basis points and previously touched that elevated level in late August. Prior to that episode that spread had not been that ...