Tuesday, January 06, 2009

High Yield Spreads Narrow For 13th Straight Day

High yield bond spreads (based on Merrill Lynch indices) narrowed for the 13th straight trading day on Monday. This marks the longest streak of declines since April 2003, and the second longest streak since the series began in 1997. At a current level of 1,744 basis points above Treasuries, high yield spreads are now down 20% from their peak level from December 15th (2,182 basis points) and back to levels we saw before the election and the run on Citibank (C). Make no mistake that at current levels high yield spreads are still extremely high, but given the widespread view that the market cannot stage a meaningful rally until spreads begin to narrow, the current move is a step in the right direction.

High Yield Spreads010509

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Lunch is for wimps

Lunch is for wimps
It's not a question of enough, pal. It's a zero sum game, somebody wins, somebody loses. Money itself isn't lost or made, it's simply transferred from one perception to another.