Municipal bonds are issued by states and municipalities and typically have tax advantages relative to other fixed income assets. In general, income from muni bonds is tax exempt at the federal level and at the state level for investors living in the issuing state. Municipal bonds have historically been favored by investors in high tax brackets who, of course, derive more benefit from the tax exemptions by virtue of being in the highest tax brackets. (more…)
Posts Tagged ‘QE’
Sector Watch: Municipal Bonds
Posted in 401(k), Asset Allocation, Bonds, ETFs, pensions, Retirement, retirement income, retirement planning, Risk, Taxes, Uncategorized, tagged Bill Gross, fixed income, folios, high yield bonds, income exempt, interest rates, Meredith Whitney, muni, Municipal Bonds, public pensions, QE, Quantitative Easing, Target Date Folios, Treasury bonds on November 19, 2012 | Leave a Comment »
Managing Your Portfolio’s Exposure to Interest Rates
Posted in 401(k), Asset Allocation, Bonds, Diversification, financial planning, Investors, Long-term investing, Market Outlook, Retirement, retirement planning, Risk, tagged 10 year treasury bonds, Beta, bond yields, interest rates, QE, Quantitative Easing, REITs, Treasury bond yield, Treasury bonds, u s treasury bonds, Utility stocks on October 24, 2012 | 3 Comments »
Today, the yields on ten-year Treasury bonds are at a fifty-year low, and no period prior to the last few years reflects yields that even come close. From 1962 to 2005, the lowest the 10-year Treasury bond yield ever got to was just below 4%, more than twice the current yield.
The chart below shows how unusual our current environment is. The vertical axis is the yield from 10-year Treasury Bonds and the horizontal axis is time and we are looking at a period from 1962 to present. From 1980 to today, we have seen the yield of 10-year Treasury bonds go from about 12% per year to below 2%. The 10-year Treasury yield is considered a benchmark measure of bond yield and interest rates. The Fed funds rate and the 10-year bond yield are very closely tied to one another. For another illustration of how interest rates, the Fed funds rate and 10-year bond yield are related, see here. (more…)
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