Recent economic data points have been mixed. On the more positive side of the ledger, there's evidence that inflation is cooling and consumer spending remains sturdy.
For a significant period of time, positive economic news — be it inflation or employment data and more — was considered a negative for bonds. Corporate debt was part of that trend.
The Markit iBoxx USD Liquid Investment Grade Index is essentially flat since the start of 2024. While that trails the slight gain notched by the Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index, some experts believe investment-grade corporate bonds remain an opportunity-rich corner of the fixed income market.
As measured by the widely followed Markit iBoxx USD Liquid Investment Grade Index, investment-grade corporate bonds aren't doing much to thrill fixed income investors this year. But yields on such debt are attractive.