Bonds

Fitch Ratings upgraded Chicago and Cook County ahead of the city’s planned sale of $643 million general obligation bonds and the county’s $168.2 million of sales tax revenue bonds. Chicago’s issuer default and GO debt rating were bumped to A-minus from BBB-plus and the city’s sales tax securitization bonds were raised to AAA from AA-plus

Municipals were little changed Tuesday as U.S. Treasuries were firmer and equities were mixed toward the end of the session. Muni yields remain near levels seen at the start of summer last year, said Tom Kozlik, managing director and head of public policy and municipal strategy at HilltopSecurities. Yields may move lower after the Federal

Connecticut sold a routine $214 million general obligation deal last week, with Wells Fargo placing the winning bid. Although the deal was unremarkable, Assistant Treasurer for Debt Management Bettina Bronisz made sure the occasion didn’t go unnoticed.  “She invited all the interns and other members of our executive staff to participate and learn about it

Kim Olsan joined NewSquare Capital last week as a senior fixed-income portfolio manager.  The 30-year industry veteran said she hopes to bring her broker-dealer background and deep knowledge of municipal bonds to the firm.  Olsan said she looks forward to “interacting directly with advisors and investors to grow their municipal footprint and expose them to

Former BlackRock employee Dave Antonelli has joined fixed-income investment management technology provider IMTC’s sales team as a strategic account executive. Antonelli spent more than 20 years at BlackRock as an institutional fixed-income multi-sector portfolio manager and has experience with managing institutional and retail portfolios and taxable retail separately managed account models, according to a press

S&P Global Ratings revised the outlook on Arizona’s AA issuer rating to positive from stable, citing the state’s “robust” economic growth, as well as its financial management. The move points to an expectation of a one-in-three chance of a rating upgrade over the next two years, according to the rating agency.  Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs

Municipals were little changed ahead of a smaller $6.6 billion new-issue calendar. U.S. Treasuries were firmer and equities rallied. The two-year muni-to-Treasury ratio Friday was at 65%, the three-year at 66%, the five-year at 67%, the 10-year at 67% and the 30-year at 83%, according to Refinitiv Municipal Market Data’s 3 p.m. EST read. ICE

California Gov. Gavin Newsom issued an executive order instructing state agencies to adopt policies to clear homeless camps on state properties and asked local governments to use the “substantial funding” provided by the state to take similar action. The executive order issued Thursday comes a month after the U.S. Supreme Court’s sweeping Grants Pass decision

Karl Knight was appointed chief executive officer of the U.S. Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority Thursday, effective July 29. The last permanent CEO, Andrew Smith, resigned on June 1 after two and a half years in the position. Since then, Ashley Bryan, who had been the head of electrical operations, has served as interim

Private equity giant KKR is buying Philadelphia-based broker-dealer Janney Montgomery Scott LLC. Janney, which dates to 1832, operates as a full-service wealth management, investment banking, and asset management firm. KKR announced Tuesday that it will acquire the firm from The Penn Mutual Life Insurance Company, its owner since 1982. After the deal closes, Janney, which

Economic development, infrastructure, and housing rank as the primary priorities for mayors and their constituents across the nation, according to the 2024 National League of Cities State of the Cities Report. This year’s report reveals how municipalities are faring in the post-COVID-19 environment, and how mayors are addressing their constituents’ concerns in the nation’s current

Municipals were mixed Thursday, while U.S. Treasuries were firmer five years and out and equities ended mixed after data showed the economy grew at a hotter-than-expected pace in the second quarter. “News that U.S. economic growth accelerated faster than expected in the second quarter has sent market participants on a roller-coaster ride,” said José Torres,

Enjoy complimentary access to top ideas and insights — selected by our editors. Competitive underwriting rose in 1H, increasing to $41.467 billion in 1,668 deals from $34.945 billion in 1,569 deals, according to LSEG data. The market share of competitive underwriting also grew to 17.5% from 14.7%. The top 5 competitive underwriters remained in the

The Louisiana State Bond Commission approved three bond issues totaling more than $3 billion on Wednesday. The commission approved a $1.33 billion to $2 billion bond to be backed by tolls on the I-10 Calcasieu River Bridge, a state general obligation bond of up to $1 billion, and gave preliminary approval to a state gas

Enjoy complimentary access to top ideas and insights — selected by our editors. Municipal bond issuance jumped 37.2% in the first half of 2024, rising to $237.372 billion from $172.959 billion in the first half of 2023. The increased par amount was achieved in 4,016 deals in 1H 2024, up from 3,536 in 1H 2023,

Municipals were little changed in secondary trading Tuesday as the busy primary market took focus, led by two billion-dollar-plus deals from the Texas Transportation Commission and South Carolina Public Service Authority. U.S. Treasuries were firmer and equities were up toward the close. The two-year muni-to-Treasury ratio Tuesday was at 63%, the three-year at 65%, the

Municipalities face the most difficulty in attracting and winning new hires compared to all other financial sector participants, according to Arizent’s workforce development research.  The difficulty comes as governments seek to attract potential young hires who are skeptical of the public sphere and its potential for career progress in the post-COVID-19 period. This disillusionment has

On the heels of President Joe Biden’s departure from the presidential race, munis were mixed Monday. U.S. Treasuries gave back some early gains, ending the day slightly weaker, while equities ended up. The two-year muni-to-Treasury ratio Monday was at 63%, the three-year at 65%, the five-year at 66%, the 10-year at 65% and the 30-year

Chicago Transit Authority Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer Jeremy Fine is leaving the agency, CTA President Dorval Carter, Jr., announced at a Wednesday meeting of the CTA’s Committee on Finance, Audit and Budget. Fine will join the Illinois Institute of Technology, CTA spokesperson Manny Gonzales said. Officials at the committee meeting said the CTA made

An Oklahoma judge on Friday issued a permanent injunction against the enforcement of a 2022 state law that led to four investment banks being banned from underwriting municipal bonds and the targeting of other financial firms for divestment purposes.  Oklahoma County District Court Judge Sheila Stinson took the action “based upon the act being unconstitutionally

Municipals were little changed Friday ahead of another week of healthy issuance. U.S. Treasuries were weaker and equities ended down. Tax-exempts, aided by rallying USTs, are “enjoying a relatively strong start” to the second half, said Barclays strategists Mikhail Foux and Clare Pickering. Investment-grade and high-yield returns “have been remarkably similar, though — on the