Bonds

Municipals ended Friday steady after a week of increased selling pressure that moved yields and ratios higher. Triple-A benchmark yields were left unchanged across the curve. U.S. Treasuries pared back overnight trading losses to end the week better. Barclays strategists Mikhail Foux, Clare Pickering and Mayur Patel said as Treasury yields have moved higher over

In oral argument before a federal appeals court, the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association contended that a Securities and Exchange Commission temporary exemption for municipal advisors during the height of the pandemic, was “arbitrary and capricious and unsupported by substantial evidence.” Making SIFMA’s case before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit

The Federal Reserve will ban top officials from buying individual stocks and bonds as well as limit active trading after an embarrassing scandal that led two officials to resign and clouded Chair Jerome Powell’s path to renomination. “These tough new rules raise the bar high in order to assure the public we serve that all

Environmental, social and governance factors are becoming increasingly important to municipal securities investors, and that trend may be transforming the information considered material for disclosure purposes, Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board CEO Mark Kim said Wednesday. “Investors and other market participants are increasingly integrating ESG factors into their investment decisions and credit analysis,” Kim said. Kim’s

Municipal benchmark yield curves were little changed on average trading Wednesday as the primary was the focus while the Investment Company Institute reported another week of inflows into municipal bond mutual funds. There was some uncertainty and a tentative mood hanging over the market, but traders said the large deals got done. Bids-wanted lists have

Passing a bipartisan infrastructure bill by month end without also reaching a deal on a reconciliation measure may endanger key municipal market priorities. “Now absolutely is the time,” said Emily Brock, director of the GFOA’s Federal Liaison Center. If lawmakers do not meet the Halloween deadline to pass both the bipartisan infrastructure framework, or BIF,

Municipals were a touch weaker 10 years and in on thin trading while U.S. Treasuries pared back earlier losses the curve flattening continued. Triple-A benchmarks saw one basis point cuts in spots inside 10-years while the five-year U.S. Treasury hit a high of 1.154% and the 30-year pared back earlier losses to land at 2.018%.

Several Midwest-based healthcare borrowers are teeing up a range of taxable, green and acquisition financing deals as reports highlight the COVID-19 pandemic’s lingering effects, creating new obstacles to margin recovery. This week, OhioHealth Corp. will price $600 million of taxable bonds with a corporate CUSIP and the University of Wisconsin Hospitals and Clinics will sell

The Securities and Exchange Commission is seeking applicants to head the office of Municipal Securities, a key post responsible for coordinating the SEC’s muni regulatory activities. An Oct. 8 posting on the USAJOBS website that serves as the portal for federal government employment lists the position that is currently held by Rebecca Olsen, who has

In the midst of a declining workforce, the Internal Revenue Service is taking an “all hands on deck” approach to hiring that includes a recent announcement for a role focused on tax-advantaged bonds. The Oct. 14 posting for a senior tax law specialist seeks a candidate experienced with complex matters involving tax-advantaged municipal finance transactions.

The specialized nature of the Internal Revenue Service’s Tax Exempt Bond program may help it go largely unchanged during the agency’s wider restructuring efforts. “We don’t know what the restructuring is going to be but since taxes and bonds are a specialty area, my belief is that they’re going to keep TEB intact,” said Bob

Municipals ended the week steady even as U.S. Treasuries lost ground and equities rallied on better consumer data and corporate earnings. Triple-A benchmark yields were left unchanged as the 10-year UST rose six basis points while the 30-year climbed three. Ratios fell on the day’s moves, with the 10-year municipal-to-UST ratio at 74% and the

The historic settlement between states and drug companies over the U.S. opioid epidemic is unlikely to have a material impact on the municipal bond market, said Barclays in a new report. The pending $26 billion deal is the largest attorney general multi-state enforcement action in history after the 1998 tobacco master settlement agreement. But it’s

The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power has agreed to give a portion of the water it gets from the State Water Project to the region’s water wholesaler to help smaller water districts that are facing greater challenges amid a severe drought. The State Water Project was constructed after World War II to funnel

Peter Delahunt, who helped build Raymond James’ municipal team over 26 years with the firm, has been wooed out of retirement to do the same for StoneX. The global firm has a large fixed-income team and had made a decision to go big on munis seeing opportunity in the sector at the height of the

California Treasurer Fiona Ma unveiled a new online program to teach local government and school board members about the ins and outs of issuing debt. The program created through the California Debt and Investment Advisory Commission, which Ma chairs, has an educational mandate. “What we are about to unveil will be the first of its

We sell a short competitive refunding. The financial advisor informs us of the low bid, and we make the award. Then, the FA resizes the maturities for the coupons on the winning bid. Because it is a competitive bid, we know we got the best deal available, the only problem is, we didn’t. What went

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul threw down a marker when she leaned on the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to reconsider the $2.1 billion LaGuardia AirTrain project. Her move comes amid wider debate about regional infrastructure. Municipal bond analyst Joseph Krist called it “the first significant capital project to fall victim to

Chicago plans to return to the market in force over the next year to tap a portion of $4.66 billion of existing borrowing authority and $4.4 billion of newly requested capacity in a mix of new money and refunding deals under its general obligation, securitization, and revenue-backed credits. A tender offer is also under consideration.

Muni issuers and borrowers should be considering climate risks and disclosing them in offering documents, a process that requires an important legal analysis. That was a major takeaway from a Wednesday discussion at the National Association of Bond Lawyers’ The Institute conference. Climate risk disclosures have been singled out by Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman

The Puerto Rico Oversight Board offered to eliminate further pension cuts for current pensioners from the Plan of Adjustment and to make funding promises if the local government approved laws, including new bonds, that would support the plan. The board sent a letter signed by Chairman David Skeel on Thursday to Gov. Pedro Pierluisi, Senate

Municipals were stronger as the New York Urban Development Corp. led the primary with $1.76 billion of taxable and exempt sales tax bonds in the competitive market while Refinitiv Lipper reported a rebound in fund inflows. Triple-A benchmarks were bumped a basis point in spots along the yield curve, but the asset class has underperformed

Puerto Rico bankruptcy Judge Laura Taylor Swain denied motions for bondholders and wage claimants to have until Oct. 25 or beyond to cast their vote on the proposed Plan of Adjustment. On Wednesday, Swain rejected bondholder Peter Hein’s motion to extend the deadline for retail bondholders. The motion would have extended the voting period from

The Puerto Rico Oversight Board said the legislation proposed by the House and amended by the Senate would force it to withdraw its proposed Plan of Adjustment because thecosts are “impossible.” “The outrageous costs of the [Senate] amendments to House Bill 1003 taken together would make the confirmation of the 7th Amended Plan of Adjustment

The municipal 10-year triple-A bond hit a high for the year Friday at 1.18%, beating the yield reached in the March selloff. Municipals were weaker Friday, playing catch-up to another day of U.S. Treasury losses as participants await an $8 billion calendar and a more uncertain market sentiment with the pullback from mutual funds hanging

When COVID-19 hit in 2020, many concerned New York City residents fled the city, trading their cramped urban apartment lives for the wide-open and relatively safe spaces of suburbia and exurbia. As the pandemic took its toll, many people — especially the wealthier ones — began moving out, along with their tax dollars, at an

Municipal advisors’ most common examination deficiencies are maintaining books and records, travel and entertainment expenses, and service contracts, officials from the Securities and Exchange Commission said in a virtual conference on Thursday. Karla Serna, a senior staff accountant at the SEC’s Chicago regional office said that one of the largest problems municipal advisors face in

Municipals were mostly steady on a day when U.S. Treasuries sold off and equities rallied in a risk-on trade from debt-ceiling news in Washington while Refinitiv Lipper reported a mere $37 million of fund inflows and a near half-billion of high-yield outflows. Triple-A benchmarks were little changed on the day with Refinitiv MMD cutting the

Pension cuts and spending measures remain an obstacle to restructuring Puerto Rico’s debt, with the president of the Puerto Rico House of Representatives asking the Oversight Board to provide written commitment to support no pension cuts and a slew of spending measures before he would sign off on a bond restructuring. “Until some accommodation can

Municipals were a touch weaker as U.S. Treasuries and equities seesawed throughout the day on debt ceiling news out of Washington while new issues in the primary were in high demand and repriced to lower yields. Triple-A benchmarks saw cuts of one to two basis points. Refinitiv MMD cut two on the 10-year and one