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July 2010

In July, the Barclay’s Municipal Bond Index rose by 1.25 percent as fund flows continued to move into the municipal sector. Broadly speaking, economic data was mixed but generally showed an economy in transition from rebounding to stabilizing and the baton passing hasn’t been smooth. Manufacturing indicators remained in healthy territory but have definitely slowed. Housing is still mired in a slump and has yet to make significant headway. The consumer struggles under sustained high unemployment levels and this appears to be negatively impacting confidence and spending.

The 7- to 10-year portions of the municipal yield curve were the best performing spots on the curve with gains of about 1.65 percent. In specialty state trading, California, Massachusetts and New Jersey outperformed, while Illinois, Ohio and Pennsylvania lagged. As a group, revenue bonds performed in-line with general obligation credits; there were few outliers outperforming but housing and industrial development underperformed in July. High yield “junk” bonds modestly outperformed rising about 1.36 percent while other lower quality bonds generally underperformed, as BBB rated bonds rose 1.03 percent, while AAA rated bonds appreciated by 1.20 percent and in-line with the market overall. Central bankers and policy makers around the world remained accommodative, but it appears the worst may have passed with regard to the European sovereign debt crisis, at least for the time being. The Fed left interest rates unchanged during the month and the Fed seems to be in no hurry to change policy at the moment.

Past performance does not guarantee future results.

The Barclays Capital Municipal Bond Index is an unmanaged index representative of the tax-exempt bond market.


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