More than a week after the U.S. government’s partial shutdown began on Oct. 1, bond-market traders were starting to express a greater degree of concern about the economic fallout.

The bond market reflects where investors think the economy is headed, long-term. The bond market is all about predicting the future. And recently, the bond market has been moving. Yields are mostly coming down, and there’s been volatility in the price of bonds. Seems like the bond market is trying to say something.

Additional Tier 1 bonds have chalked up their biggest bull run ever, with a relentless rally in the risky bank debt showing no signs of letting up — despite some concerns about the market getting overheated.

S&P 500 futures are up 0.4%. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures are adding 0.3%. Nasdaq 100 futures are gaining 0.5%. On Tuesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 202.9 points, or 0.22%, to 46,

Bluestem Financial Advisors increased its holding of the Vanguard Total Bond Market ETF by 105,000 shares in the third quarter, an estimated $7.7 million transaction based on average prices during the period. Post-trade, Bluestem holds 738,811 shares of the Vanguard ETF, valued at $55 million as of September 30.

For years, Japan’s nearly $8 trillion government bond market was an oddity among global peers. Prices barely stirred, and yields were razor-thin—sometimes even negative, so investors were essentially paying to hold the bonds.

A surge in the bond market's best gauge of how much inflation investors expect in the years ahead could be underestimating how long the economic shock from the pandemic will last, even if the new Joe Biden administration pushes its proposed massive stimulus package through Congress quickly.