Bonds

Municipals were weaker Wednesday as investors digested another larger new-issue slate, August redemption dollars, better-than expected economic data and the Fitch downgrade to the United States’ rating. U.S. Treasury yields rose slightly out long and equities sold off. The weakness in munis and UST resulted partly from the ADP Employment Report that showed 324,000 jobs were

Miami-Dade County is preparing to come to market this summer with a $500 million bond issue to help expand PortMiami’s ability to cater to cruise passengers. The county expects to issue more than $499 million of taxable Series 2023 fixed-rate senior lien seaport revenue bonds, with a final maturity in 2056. The pricing is expected

Municipals were weaker in secondary trading to start August as several large deals took focus in the primary market. Munis slightly outperformed Treasury losses as the first round of August redemptions buoyed the market. Equities ended mixed. Triple-A yield curves were cut three to six basis points, depending on the scale, while UST yields rose

Financial woes at an Iowa hospital led a major bondholder and a bond trustee to state court seeking the appointment of a receiver for the facility, while they demand the immediate payment of principal and interest in the wake of default events. The move comes as hospitals nationwide face persistent pressures as they slowly recover

Municipals were lightly traded and mostly steady Monday while U.S. Treasuries were slightly firmer from Friday’s levels and equities closed in the black. With muni returns in positive territory to end the month and supply down 8% for the month and 16% for the year, the calendar flips to the final month of the muni

The head of the San Diego Association of Governments, the metropolitan planning organization for the county, notified the organization’s board late Friday that he would be stepping down in December. SANDAG Chief Executive Officer Hasan Ikhrata’s last day with the agency will be December 29. “This news is a bittersweet moment for our region,” said

Environmental, social, and governance capital programs continue to flourish under increased scrutiny, said one presenter at a recent securities industry event. Climate change may be nothing new, said Trenton J. Allen, CEO of Sustainable Capital Advisors, but the “growing appetite” for suitably focused investments is, and issuers and investors alike can benefit from strategies to

Munis were weaker to close out the week, playing catch up to Thursday’s larger U.S. Treasury losses and preparing for a larger new-issue calendar led by billion-dollar issues from the New York Dormitory Authority and triple-A rated Minnesota, along with multiple large deals from Texas school districts. U.S. Treasuries were firmer Friday and equities rallied.

Congress adjourned for its long summer break Thursday still far apart on top-line 2024 spending levels with only a few weeks left to reconcile the difference. There are also looming deadlines to pass a new farm bill and reauthorize the Federal Aviation Administration. Congress faces a partial government shutdown if it hasn’t passed funding bills

Hospitals, already facing multiple challenges, are being stressed by a heat wave that has hit a large swath of the United States, according to a Moody’s Investors Service analyst. A heat dome that initially impacted California and Texas has spread across most of the southwest and is also affecting some Northwest states like Idaho. An

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board has voted to move ahead with its controversial amendments to Rule G-14 on trade reporting, changing the trade reporting window to one minute from 15 minutes. That was approved during its quarterly board meeting that took place July 26-27, during which the board also approved a new $47 million budget

Issuers have had to become creative to derive interest cost savings in the years since the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 eliminated the tax-exempt advanced refunding option. A clear successor has yet to emerge, but rising interest rates, falling prices and fluctuating relative value prompted issuers to consider tender offers as a way

Munis yields rose Thursday, following and outperforming a U.S. Treasury sell-off on the heels of strong-than-expected economic data. Equities ended down. Thursday’s “economic data offers the latest evidence that the U.S. economy is weathering the fastest rate hikes in a generation without much damage to the major gear-works of the economy,” said Wells Fargo Securities

The Securities and Exchange Commission has adopted cybersecurity rules, requiring public companies to disclose material information on their cybersecurity risk management and governance strategy and requiring firms to disclose cybersecurity breaches within four days of them deeming it material to investors. The adopted rules don’t have any direct implications for municipal issuers, but the requirements

Munis were steady to weaker in spots Wednesday, while U.S. Treasuries were firmer after the Fed hiked rates 25 basis points and signaled more may come this year. Equities ended the session in the red. The Fed just “delivered a 25bps hike and by holding firm to their data dependent rhetoric and are trying to

There should be less concern over interest rates and inflation and more optimism over credit quality and returns in the second half of 2023, municipal experts said. While investors will still keep inflation and the Federal Reserve Board’s policy decisions on their radar screens, overall market technicals are expected to appeal to investors before year end,

Municipals were little changed in secondary trading Tuesday as the focus was on the primary where the state of Washington sold large general obligation bond deals ahead of the FOMC rates decision. Treasury yields rose a basis point or two throughout most of the curve and equities ended the session in the black. The two-year

Alaska received what state officials called its highest rating since 2018 when Kroll Bond Rating Agency assigned its AA to the state’s general obligation bonds in its inaugural rating of the state. Kroll also assigned a stable outlook to the GOs and its AA-minus rating and stable outlook to the Alaska Municipal Bond Bank Authority’s

The Massachusetts Department of Transportation’s executive board last week approved a $15.7 billion capital plan for 2023 to 2028. Approximately 60% of capital spending called for is “focused on improving the reliability and resiliency” of the existing infrastructure, MassDOT chief Gina Fiandaca wrote in an introduction to the plan, with an additional 23% going towards

While it’s clear the Fed will raise the fed funds rate target by 25 basis points to a range between 5.25% and 5.50%, there’s less clarity about whether this will end the hiking cycle. The Federal Open Market Committee meets Tuesday and Wednesday. In its latest Summary of Economic Projections, most FOMC members saw rates