BYM News and Press, Blackrock Municipal Income Quality Trust of Beneficial Interest From 01/13/21

Despite 2020's many challenges, the Bloomberg Barclays Municipal Bond Index was up 5.2%, with returns that were even more compelling for the second half of the year, across the credit spectrum. During the year, we expect net supply to turn negative as more bonds mature or more bonds t...

The municipal securities most affected by the pandemic were in the sectors of transportation, hospitality and entertainment, higher education, and healthcare; and most of these sectors did receive CARES Act funding. Moody's notes that although COVID-19 continues to weigh on credit qua...

The new Administration's tax proposals, in year one, total some $3.9 trillion, according to Moody's Analytics estimates. Yields on munis sank to 1.14%, which is their lowest since 1979. Also, the municipal bond spread to Treasuries is near historic lows. Yields have gone up somewh...

The bond fund outflows of March followed the downdraft in oil prices caused by the onset of the pandemic, which caused the sharp sell-off in the stock market. The rebound at the end of March was one of the most vigorous muni rallies ever witnessed. Muni yields across the board are...

A dearth of municipal issuance drove strong performance in November. Typical year-end outflows due to tax loss selling have yet to emerge. We expect firm demand to outpace modest issuance through year end. For further details see: Munis Make Up For A Rough Ride

November was one of the best months for markets in general and that includes CEFs, which rallied hard. Our Core Portfolio was up 7.2% in the month. Discounts have tightened materially in the last month but still remain much wider than at the start of the year. We describe why we t...

Municipal bonds are still looking like a compelling piece of the CEF market despite the prospect of higher interest rates. For munis, remember it's the spread between borrowing costs (for leverage) and earnings on that borrowed money that matters most for sustainable distributions. ...

With the odds against the Democrats winning both Senate seats in the Georgia runoff, the Biden administration will likely have to work with a Republican Senate majority to navigate various tax policy issues in the coming year. Infrastructure seems to be the one topic that a potentiall...

23 out of 23 CEF sectors positive on price and 23 out of 23 sectors positive on NAV last week as election volatility subsides. NHF tender offer begins, with an expiration date of December 10, 2020. We discuss RIV's rights offering results in a separate report. For further de...

Many of the policies that a president will ultimately decide can be impactful. For example, tax policy, which could impact a state or local government's ability to raise their own taxes and impact demographics. But another impact is that it can also increase the attractiveness of munis as...