Bonds

Municipals were firmer Thursday following a stronger U.S. Treasury session while municipal bond mutual funds reported the second consecutive week of inflows. Equities closed the session mixed. Triple-A yields fell one to five basis points while USTs saw gains of seven to nine basis points. The moves pushed muni to UST ratios slightly higher. The

The U.S. First Circuit Court of Appeals almost entirely overturned a lower court’s reasoning that underlay an Oversight Board proposed Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority plan of adjustment, in what appears to be a major bondholder victory. On Wednesday afternoon, a panel of appeals court judges ruled unanimously that PREPA bondholders had a perfected lien

A proposed settlement between Houston and its firefighters union moved forward Wednesday with the city council authorizing the issuance of $650 million of general obligation judgment bonds, although a vote on a collective bargaining agreement was delayed.   Both are part of a plan to end an eight-year contract impasse and litigation in Harris County District

Municipals were steady Tuesday ahead of Wednesday’s Federal Open Market Committee meeting and Consumer Price Index report, as U.S. Treasury yields fell and equities were mixed near the close. “The market’s great expectations regarding Fed cuts have witnessed a dramatic downward adjustment since the start of the year,” said Vikram Rai, head of municipal markets

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board’s new amendments filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission don’t go far enough in addressing the supervisory concerns associated with investments bankers and other traders involved in public offerings and private placements. That view was collected as part of the MSRB’s amendments to Rule G-27 on supervision, which brings the

Municipals were little changed Monday as investors await a smaller calendar amid an FOMC week, outperforming Treasuries, which saw small losses, while equities were up near the close. The two-year muni-to-Treasury ratio Monday was at 65%, the three-year at 65%, the five-year at 66%, the 10-year at 65% and the 30-year at 82%, according to

The U.S. Virgin Islands government has hired Ernst & Young to assist financially troubled Water and Power Authority in returning to fiscal health. Earlier this year the Virgin Islands Senate directed hiring a “turnaround company” for the utility and last week the Public Finance Authority selected E&Y from the four finalists. Within 120 days EY

Municipals saw losses but outperformed a U.S. Treasury selloff sparked by better-than-expected jobs data while a much smaller primary slate awaits investors ahead of the June Federal Open Market Committee meeting. The non-farm payrolls data further raises concerns over the timing of the Central Bank’s rate cutting schedule. “This blockbuster NFP makes it harder for

Gov. J.B. Pritzker on has signed Illinois’ $53.1 billion fiscal year 2025 budget, which includes $198 million for the state’s rainy day fund and $182 million for the migrant crisis as well as creating a Department of Early Childhood and an innovation center at the University of Illinois-Springfield and funding the new state-based insurance marketplace.

A public private partnership to fund upgrades and the greening of the central heating and cooling system at the University of Maryland’s main College Park campus is slated to arrive next week in the primary market. Conduit issuer Maryland Economic Development Corp. is set to price $345.5 million of green revenue bonds for the NextGen

The University of Arizona expects more strain on its cash flow in the coming fiscal year as it offered a peek at underlying assumptions for its next budget. In a presentation to a Arizona Board of Regents committee on Thursday, the university’s preliminary forecast of days cash on hand for fiscal 2025 showed it slipping

Struggling Pennsylvania hospital chain Tower Health plans to exchange current debt and raise additional funds as it pursues a turnaround.  The system, trustee and bondholders of about $992 million in debt are supporting an exchange of “substantially all” existing bonds, according to a May 31 agreement that Tower Health disclosed in a filing Monday on

The municipal bond market, fragmented and complex, is the original impact investment sector in US markets. If you read this newspaper for any period of time, this is not a novel statement. The idea first gained traction when a Silicon Valley startup raised millions in 2013 in part on this theme and extended into mainstream

Municipals were firmer Thursday as the primary market slowed and muni mutual fund inflows returned. U.S. Treasury yields were little changed and equities ended mixed. Triple-A yields fell another three to eight basis points, depending on the scale. The two-year muni-to-Treasury ratio Thursday was at 67%, the three-year at 67%, the five-year at 69%, the

The U.S. Department of Transportation has amended its well-known Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act program to clarify interest rates on its longest-term loans and to broaden eligibility for projects. The new rules cover provisions that were included, but not yet implemented, in the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. The IIJA, among other things,

Municipals were firmer Wednesday amid another heavy new-issue calendar, led by several large deals that saw yields lowered upon repricing. U.S. Treasuries yields fell further and equities ended up. Issuance remains robust Wednesday with an estimated $5.9 billion, said J.P. Morgan strategists, led by Peter DeGroot. The negotiated calendar was led by $830 million from

Kansas legislative leaders, who are seeking to coax the Kansas City Chiefs to leave neighboring Missouri, formally invited the National Football League team to join their effort to build a stadium with the help of bonds. In a letter to Chiefs Chairman and CEO Clark Hunt that the Republican lawmakers released publicly Tuesday, they invited

A surprise primary result means Puerto Rico will have a new governor next year. Puerto Rico Resident Commissioner Jenniffer González Colón upset Gov. Pedro Pierluisi in the race for the New Progressive Party nomination for governor. The New Progressive Party supports statehood for Puerto Rico. As resident commissioner González Colón represents, without being able to

The Internal Revenue Service has settled with the Port of Port Arthur Navigation District of Jefferson County, Texas regarding the tax-exempt status of a 2017 $55 million bond issuance.   The issuer disclosed the recent settlement on EMMA Monday, concluding the matter after it was first disclosed months ago. “As a result, there is no change

The backers of a tax measure to shore up funding for ailing San Francisco regional transit providers, notably the Bay Area Rapid Transit District, pulled it amid opposition on several fronts. Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, and Sen. Aisha Wahab, D-Hayward, who authored Senate Bill 1031, had promised further amendments as it moved to the

Amid increasing signs of financial and operational distress, the U.S. Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority board Monday announced CEO Andrew Smith will resign, effective June 30. The WAPA board held an emergency meeting Friday afternoon to deal with several topics. Nearly the entire meeting was held outside of public view but at least two