Bonds

New York City has received a boost of state support as it seeks to head off a worsening affordable housing crisis, including an increase in the bonding capacity of the New York City Housing Development Corp. Gov. Kathy Hochul this week signed into law a trio of bills passed by New York’s Legislature leveraging state

Municipals were steady Friday ahead of an expected paltry new-issue calendar. U.S. Treasuries were firmer 10 years and in and equities were mixed after a volatile week of market-moving economic data and increasing geopolitical tensions in the Middle East while all markets await the Federal Open Market Committee’s November meeting. “Any chance of a dovish

A new stream of federal funding may find its way into office conversions and other efforts designed to boost the nation’s housing supply, and public finance officers are eyeing a renewed effort to finance homebuilding with new rules on Community Development Block Grants and the freeing up of federally-owned land.  The new efforts were officially

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board has approved its first fees under its new rate card model, which helps the board respond to market pressures and adjust yearly rates accordingly, and expects to file those changes with the Securities and Exchange Commission within a month’s time. Of the four fees the board collects from regulated entities,

Market data platform SOLVE has introduced a public finance workflow solution that shows historical scales for all muni deals, allowing for spread comparisons of where a deal priced in the past to where it might price in current market conditions. The firm’s clients wanted a tool to deliver deal-based spreads on their terms, said Gregg

Oklahoma’s Council of Bond Oversight approved up to $560 million of revenue bonds Thursday for the state’s Grand River Dam Authority (GRDA), which is expected to start issuing the debt later this year. Proceeds will finance repairs and improvements, including a natural gas-fired generating unit to replace the authority’s last remaining coal-fired unit, as well

A Louisiana congressional committee voted down plans for a $2 billion-plus public-private partnership that would replace an aging toll bridge near Lake Charles, a move that project proponents say will cost the state and provide for few alternatives. In an 8-6 vote on Tuesday, the Louisiana State Legislature’s Joint Transportation Highway and Public Works Committee

During an unexpectedly challenging year so far, following an even more volatile one in 2022, predicting 2024 may seem daunting amid current market conditions. Despite that, as an industry it’s important to connect and get a sense of where others see various factors impacting the public finance community, from interest rates to ESG. We would

Volatility continues as municipals were slightly weaker in spots Wednesday but outperformed U.S. Treasuries, which saw the greatest losses out long. Equities ended down. Munis were cut up to three basis points, depending on the scale, while UST yields rose up to as much as 14 basis points in 30 years. The two-year muni-to-Treasury ratio

Municipal interest rates will climb higher by yearend, market volatility will be the biggest challenge facing the industry heading into 2024 and issuance is likely to remain stagnant next year.  That’s according to respondents to The Bond Buyer’s Live Market Survey at the California Public Finance conference last week. The survey, sponsored by Fitch Ratings,

Municipals were slightly firmer Tuesday as large deals priced in the primary saw yields lowered upon repricing. U.S. Treasuries were firmer out long and equities rallied. The two-year muni-to-Treasury ratio Tuesday was at 71%, the three-year was at 72%, the five-year at 72%, the 10-year at 74% and the 30-year at 91%, according to Refinitiv

Some community colleges in California are learning a hard lesson about free money. The schools signed up to sell municipal securities whose debt service would be entirely covered by the loan and whose principal would be forgiven at maturity. They would never have to write a check. Now at least two schools are facing the

New Jersey’s tax revenues have continued to slide in the new fiscal year, according to recently published figures. The state pulled in $4.8 billion in taxes in September, New Jersey’s Department of the Treasury said in its monthly revenue report, a year-over-year decline of 5.1% for the month and drop of 6.2% for the first

Municipals took a breather Friday and were little changed ahead of a sizable new-issue calendar while underperforming a better U.S. Treasury market. Equities were in the red to close the session. Triple-A yields barely budged while USTs saw yields fall nine to 11 basis points on bonds in the three- to seven-year maturities and smaller

Maine is one step closer to realizing ambitions of a native offshore wind energy industry. The federal Bureau of Ocean Management on Thursday announced the findings of a study carried out in conjunction with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration identifying 3.5 million square acres in the Gulf of Maine they believe to be suitable

Federal Reserve policy makers risk slamming the brakes too hard on the economy by reacting aggressively to each data point that comes in, said Mohamed El-Erian, the chief economic adviser at Allianz SE. They should, he said, establish a longer-term vision for where interest-rate policy is heading. “You cannot drive a car without some understanding

Recent Securities and Exchange Commission enforcement actions signal that regulators are widening their net to charge more types of municipal market participants as so-called gatekeepers against misconduct. So said panelists Thursday at the National Association of Bond Lawyer’s annual conference in Chicago. The SEC’s enforcement division and Public Finance Abuse Unit activities are “reaching all

Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland President Loretta Mester said the U.S. central bank is close to wrapping up its aggressive tightening campaign if the economy evolves as expected. “Regardless of the decision made at our next meeting, if the economy evolves as anticipated, in my view, we are likely near or at a holding point

The Power Authority of the State of New York is heading into the municipal bond market next week with a $750.975 million issuance of green bonds. Goldman Sachs as senior manager is set to price the Series 2023A tax-exempt transmission project green revenue bonds on Tuesday after a one-day retail order period. Smart Path Connect is a part

The stalemate that has stymied Congress via the House’s inability to pick a new Speaker has turned months of slow progress on several muni-related legislation to a full stop, though two key agency reauthorizations and a backlog of appropriations could force things to start moving forward soon. “A lot of these priority items are bottlenecking,

Municipals weakened further Thursday as outflows from muni mutual funds lessened, while short-term U.S. Treasury yields fell after Fed Chairman Jerome Powell suggested central bankers could raise rates again, but not at the upcoming meeting. Equities sold off. The two-year muni-to-Treasury ratio Thursday was at 71%, the three-year was at 71%, the five-year at 70%,