FLMB News and Press, Franklin Templeton ETF Trust Liberty Municipal Bond From 10/20/21

The strong economic and market trends of the first half of 2021 wavered during the third quarter. The coronavirus delta variant caught up with the US at the height of the summer, just as vaccinations slowed and concerns grew that inflation might flare and persist. Even so, equity mark...

The increase in Delta infections put a damper on the return to normalcy in the third quarter. Strong revenue growth and stimulus funds resulted in performance by states in excess of 2021 budget expectations. While ratings changes had been mostly positive for many years, the pandem...

Rising interest rates drove negative total returns. Supply and demand dynamics turned less seasonally favorable and acted as a headwind. More attractive valuations could provide near-term opportunity. For further details see: Munis Remained Tethered To Rates In September...

Bond yields have moved up somewhat this month but are still a long way from trailing inflation. For most of 2020, beyond the peak of the pandemic, tax-free bond yields were close to taxable bond levels. Two Federal Reserve Bank Presidents, Eric Rosengren of the Boston Federal Rese...

The Treasury curve continued to flatten during the third quarter of 2021, with short-term Treasury yields rising while longer Treasury yields declined. As the Treasury curve flattened, we saw minimal movement in the already tight spreads of corporates and taxable municipals. At th...

A fixed income investment can serve as diversifier against equities, a source of income, or even protection against inflation when using TIPS. As interest rates and inflation expectations evolve, a tactical rules-based approach to portfolio optimization can help provide investors with...

Modestly negative performance in August capped a robust summer seasonal period. Issuance exceeded expectations, resulting in less of a supply/demand imbalance than is typical. We maintain a defensive posture into the historically less favorable month of September. For furthe...

The US House Ways and Means Committee released their new 881-page tax proposal –there's some tricky stuff in it. If passed, the new top Federal rate in the US will be 46.4 percent, while the top capital gains tax rate appears it will be 31.8 percent from my calculations. NY...

While they may have become more common over the last 10 years, municipal defaults and bankruptcies still remain rare overall. The five-year all-rated cumulative default rate of municipal bonds throughout the study period (1970-2020) was unchanged at 0.08% and still remains very low. ...

Franklin Liberty Federal Tax-Free Bond ETF (NYSEARCA:FLMB) - $0.0370. 30-Day SEC Yield of 0.45% as of Jul. 31. Payable Sep 07; for shareholders of record Sep 01; ex-div Aug 31. For further details see: Franklin Liberty Federal Tax-Free Bond ETF declares monthly distribution of $0.0370 ...