Outflows from municipal bond mutual funds persisted for a 32nd straight week.
Muni bond funds that report flows weekly recorded outflows of $1.47 billion for the week of Jan. 1, down from $1.49 billion in the week prior, Lipper FMI numbers showed.
The number of
Assets for all muni funds that report their flows fell to $269.1 billion, from $270.1 billion for the week ended Dec. 25.
The value of the holdings for weekly reporting funds rose by $549 million. The previous week they declined by $220 million.
The four-week moving average for all municipal bond mutual funds that report their flows weekly was $1.64 billion of outflows, compared with $1.50 billion of outflows the week before.
Long-term muni bond funds that report flows weekly continue to shoulder the bulk of the hemorrhaging; they recorded outflows of $1.23 billion for the week ended Jan. 1. The week before, those funds reported outflows of $1.15 billion.
Weekly reporting high-yield muni bond funds had outflows of $362 million on the week, a slight improvement from the $382 million they registered one week earlier.
Assets for high-yield funds that report their flows weekly slipped for an eighth consecutive week to $33.72 billion, from $33.94 billion the week before.
The value of the holdings for high-yield funds rose by $142 million, against a decline of $14 million the previous week.
The four-week moving average for all high-yield municipal bond funds that report their flows weekly showed $365 million of outflows, versus $324 million of outflows the previous week.
James Ramage is a reporter for The Bond Buyer covering municipal bond investing and investors.