MQT News and Press, Blackrock MuniYield Quality Fund II Inc. From 03/18/19

So far this year, municipal bond ("muni") funds have seen inflows of approximately $15 billion. This is the best start to a year in more than a decade, with evidence that demand is being stimulated by investors in higher tax rate states seeking a degree of relief from the pain forced upon t...

This report and the data within were published to members on Jan. 8th. Municipal bonds finally had their place in the sun in the fourth quarter after a weak first nine months of 2018. The Fed continued to raise rates in December, pushing up the 24-hour rate to 2.25%-2.50%. While the Fed ...

By John R. Mousseau, CFA, Gabriel Hament and Patricia Healy, CFA There have been headlines recently describing the drop in state tax revenues versus forecasts for some of the higher-tax states such as California, New York, and New Jersey. Part of the falloff is due to an exodus of higher-i...

Municipal bond investors like their muni portfolios to play the role of Old Faithful in their overall asset allocation, providing safety and income. But that doesn't mean that the investment environment is reliably the same. How can muni investors stay on track in 2019? They can adhere to thes...

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By Patricia Healy, CFA Has The Municipal Credit Cycle Plateaued? Many positive indicators suggest that the municipal credit cycle has yet to plateau. Upgrades continue to outpace downgrades; the US economy is still growing; federal tax reform boosted revenues in fiscal 2018; and rainy ...

The BlackRock registered closed-end funds (each a "Fund" and collectively, the "Funds") announced today that Henry Gabbay will become an independent director/trustee of each Fund on January 1, 2019. Mr. Gabbay will stand for election at the 2019 annual shareholder meeting for each Fund liste...

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By Kathy A. Jones Peak expectations The worst may be over for the bond bear market. After more than two years of steadily rising bond yields (and falling bond prices, which move inversely to yields), our research suggests that 10-year Treasury bond yields may have peaked for this tighten...