Friday, December 10, 2010 6:45 PM

Bond Massacre Hits Treasuries, TIPs, Munis, Mortgages; PIMCO Among Biggest Losers; Is the Bond Bull Finally Over?

The treasury market has slapped Bernanke silly. Yields have soared ever since QE II was finalized in November. Mortgage rates are up a half-percent in a month and Bankrate shows they are about at the same level as a year ago. Treasuries, TIPS, and municipal bond funds have all been hit hard in the past few weeks. Matters took a turn for the worse when President Obama agreed to a tax compromise that will cost close to $900 billion.

With that backdrop, please consider Pimco Total Return Among Biggest Losers as Bond Rally Fizzles http://noir.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid ... h97H2JvkYc

Bill Gross’s Pimco Total Return Fund, the world’s largest mutual fund, was the second-biggest decliner among the largest U.S. bond managers in the past month as clients pulled money for the first time in two years amid a selloff in Treasuries.

The $250 billion Pimco Total Return fell 3 percent in the 30 days through Dec. 8, trailing all but one of the 10 largest bond mutual funds, which lost an average of 2 percent, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Only the $33 billion Vanguard Inflation-Protected Securities Fund declined more, falling 3.9 percent in the period.

Benchmark 10-year Treasuries had their biggest two-day slump since September 2008 this week after tax cuts, signs of an economic recovery and asset purchases by the Federal Reserve fueled expectations inflation will accelerate. The losses may surprise investors who poured $267 billion into fixed income funds this year through October, ignoring warnings by Gross that the 30-year bond rally may have run its course.

“This is a very violent move we had this week,â€