National Municipals Fall in June; Second Worst Month of the Year for S&P National Municipal Bond Index

NEW YORK, July 15, 2008 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- MHP | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating -- In its monthly report on fixed income indices, Standard & Poor's Index Services reported today that the S&P National Municipal Bond Index declined 1.15% in June, registering its second worst month of the year after falling 5.24% in February. For the year, the closely followed Index has declined 0.25%.

According to the monthly report, S&P Fixed Income UpdateA the S&P California Municipal Bond Index and the S&P New York Municipal Bond Index both fell in June with returns of -1.09% and -0.89%. For the year, the S&P California Municipal Bond Index is down 0.21% and the S&P New York Municipal Bond Index is up 0.20%.

The S&P Fixed Income Update can be accessed by going to: www.indices.standardandpoors.com and clicking on research.

"Selling related to bond issuer downgrades, insurance companies liquidating securities to meet Midwest flood related claims, and fears of weakening state tax revenue growth all weighed on the fixed income market during the first half of the year," notes Michael McGlone, Director at Standard & Poor's Index Services and author of the monthly report. "However, the S&P National Municipal Bond Index is down only slightly this year while the broad stock market measure, the S&P 500, has fallen over 15%."

According to Standard & Poor's report, the resumed market flight-to- quality widened credit spreads in June adding pressure to the Muni market as the benchmark 10yr treasury yield fell 9bps and the S&P 500 lost 8.43% on the month (total return). The market seemed to find value later in the month as top rated 30-year Muni bonds rallied into the 5% handle. In addition, the Muni bond yield curve flattened in June, along with the treasury curve, as the FOMC indicated future cuts are less likely due to inflation concerns.

A table showing the performance returns of the S&P National Municipal Bond Index, the S&P California Municipal Bond Index and the S&P New York Municipal Bond Index can be found at the conclusion of this press release.

The S&P National Municipal Bond Index is a broad, comprehensive, market value-weighted index designed to measure the performance of the investment-grade U.S. municipal bond market. As of June 30, 2008, the index consisted of 3,233 bonds, with a total market value of US$ 323.2 billion. The S&P National Municipal Bond Index consists of a broad-based national index, as well as state level municipal bond sub-indices. At this time the state level indices are the S&P California Municipal Bond Index, and the S&P New York Municipal Bond Index. Performance Returns S&P National S&P California S&P New York Municipal Municipal Municipal Bond Index Bond Index Bond Index 1 Month -1.15% -1.09% -0.89% 3 Month 0.94% 0.81% 1.22% YTD -0.25% -0.21% 0.20% 1 Year* 2.75% 2.75% 3.35% 3 Years*(Annualized) 2.83% 2.90% 2.99% 5 Years*(Annualized) 3.59% 3.78% 3.66% 2007* 3.18% 3.18% 3.31% 2006* 5.04% 5.00% 4.92% 2005* 3.88% 4.34% 3.83% 2004* 4.75% 5.63% 4.36% 2003* 4.97% 3.96% 5.71% *Index inception September 2007, historical returns based upon proforma data.

About Standard & Poor's Index Services

Standard & Poor's Index Services, the world's leading index provider, maintains a wide variety of investable and benchmark indices to meet an array of investor needs. Its family of indices includes the S&P 500, an index with $1.5 trillion invested and $4.85 trillion benchmarked, and the S&P Global 1200, a composite index comprised of seven regional and country headline indices. For more information, please visit www.standardandpoors.com/indices.

About Standard & Poor's

Standard & Poor's, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies (NYSE: MHP), is the world's foremost provider of financial market intelligence, including independent credit ratings, indices, risk evaluation, investment research and data. With approximately 8,500 employees, including wholly owned affiliates, located in 23 countries and markets, Standard & Poor's is an essential part of the world's financial infrastructure and has played a leading role for more than 140 years in providing investors with the independent benchmarks they need to feel more confident about their investment and financial decisions. For more information, visit http://www.standardandpoors.com.

SOURCE Standard & Poor's

http://www.standardandpoors.com

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