Category: Bonds
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Volatile USTs dragging down munis in December
<img src=”https://public.flourish.studio/visualisation/20962238/thumbnail” width=”100%” alt=”chart visualization” /> Municipals ignored losses in U.S. Treasuries Friday ahead of another week without new-issue supply to provide direction. Equities saw losses. Triple-A muni yield curves were unchanged while USTs saw losses of up to six basis points while the 10-year UST closed the session above 4.6%. While Friday’s muni session…
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Texas judge mostly sides with cities in online sales tax rule challenge
“This ruling protects critical funding that helps us provide public safety, infrastructure and other essential services for our residents,” Round Rock Mayor Craig Morgan said.City of Round Rock, Texas A Texas judge ruled largely in favor of six cities that sued the state comptroller over a move that would have cost them millions of dollars…
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Muni mutual funds see another round of $800M-plus outflows
<img src=”https://public.flourish.studio/visualisation/20953080/thumbnail” width=”100%” alt=”chart visualization” /> Municipals were little changed Thursday along with U.S. Treasuries while equities made gains. Mutual funds saw more outflows while money market funds were back in the black. The market is in a “seasonal winter softness” period where technicals are weak at the moment, said Jeff Timlin, a managing partner…
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Infrastructure in 2025: optimism tempered by uncertainty
President-elect Donald Trump, pictured here at the December reopening of the Cathedral of Notre-Dame, has pledged to shift the country’s energy and infrastructure priorities.Nathan Laine/Bloomberg The outlook for the public infrastructure market next year is a mix of optimism and uncertainty as municipal market participants look forward to a rush of projects amid threats to…
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California high court allows extra time for briefing in pension debt case
Laura Dougherty, staff attorney for the Howard Jarvis Association, was granted a one-month extension to Jan. 31 to file briefs in the case against San Jose.Howard Jarvis Taxpayer Association The California Supreme Court agreed to an extension for filing briefs in San Jose v. Howard Jarvis Taxpayer Association, the primary case challenging cities’ use of…
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Moody’s says Chicago’s 2025 budget doesn’t change credit trajectory
Chicago’s 2025 budget does not materially alter its credit profile, Moody’s Ratings said this week.Bloomberg News Chicago’s 2025 budget that passed the City Council this month will not materially alter the city’s credit profile, Moody’s Ratings said in a Monday statement. The final 2025 budget featured no property tax hike, and received criticism for using…
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Signals point to a better bid muni market to close out 2024
<img src=”https://public.flourish.studio/visualisation/20935176/thumbnail” width=”100%” alt=”chart visualization” /> Municipals were steady to slightly weaker Tuesday as U.S. Treasuries closed the session a bit stronger while equities were in the black. The two-year municipal to UST ratio Tuesday was at 65%, the five-year at 65%, the 10-year at 67% and the 30-year at 82%, according to Municipal Market…
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San Francisco loses second triple-A rating
The aerial view of San Francisco was taken during better times in 2015 when the city’s tech industry was thriving and commercial rents were skyrocketing.David Paul Morris/Bloomberg San Francisco’s continuing weakened economic trends and deficit spending have resulted in a one-notch downgrade to AA-plus from AAA of its long-term rating and a negative outlook from…
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Munis outperform UST losses, sit back after large selloff
<img src=”https://public.flourish.studio/visualisation/20924481/thumbnail” width=”100%” alt=”chart visualization” /> Municipals were little changed Monday ahead of the holidays as U.S. Treasury yields rose and equities were mixed. The two-year municipal to UST ratio Monday was at 64%, the five-year at 65%, the 10-year at 67% and the 30-year at 82%, according to Municipal Market Data’s 3 p.m. EST…
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Hospitals could be hurting if Trump, GOP slash Medicaid
A California hospital during the pandemic in early 2021. Hospital sector recovery from COVID-19 may be turned around by Medicaid cuts under Trump, industry analysts say.Bloomberg News If President-elect Trump’s ideas for healthcare move forward, California’s budget as well its hospitals are likely to face challenges. The Golden State wouldn’t be alone, as the proposed changes…
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Common reserve bond funds spurring investment
“The whole goal of the bond fund was, ‘how can we further extend economic development,’ said Craig Teamer, director of finance and special projects for the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority. ”If you’re looking to amplify some additional investment in economic development, a bond fund could be considered, and it’s also could be a revenue stream. There…
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Cyber event cited in Palomar Health ratings falling further into junk territory
Palomar Health’s continuing financial woes caused Fitch to push its ratings further into junk territory.Palomar Health The ratings of troubled Palomar Health, an Escondido-based two-hospital system, took another hit this week, falling further down the Fitch Ratings junk scale as its financial situation worsened. In a Wednesday report, Fitch cited a “significant cyber event that…
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SEC charges Silver Point Capital with nonpublic information policy failures
The Securities and Exchange Commission filed suit against Silver Point Capital in a federal court in Connecticut on Friday.Bloomberg News The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission charged Silver Point Capital, L.P. with breaches of nonpublic information federal laws with regards to Puerto Rico bonds. The SEC filed its case in the U.S. District Court for…
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Municipals close tumultuous week steadier, but damage done to returns
&lt;img src=”https://public.flourish.studio/visualisation/20893870/thumbnail” width=”100%” alt=”chart visualization” /&gt; Municipals saw a stronger tone after U.S. Treasuries improved on a slightly lower-than-expected inflation print while equities made gains to close out a volatile week. “This month’s inflation print is quite benign, but does it even matter? The bottom-line is another one or two months of benign inflation prints will…
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Texas clears Wells Fargo after bank quits Net-Zero alliance
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton addresses the Conservative Political Action Conference in February. The Republican on Friday lauded Wells Fargo’s move to leave the Net-Zero Banking Alliance, ending a review by his office that could have led to the bank being banned from underwriting state and local government bonds.Bloomberg News Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton…
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Munis sell off as macroeconomic, policy volatility weigh heavily over markets
&lt;img src=”https://public.flourish.studio/visualisation/20879380/thumbnail” width=”100%” alt=”chart visualization” /&gt; Municipals sold off Thursday, playing catch up to the U.S. Treasury’s extended rout across most of the curve. Equities ended mixed as all markets further digested macroeconomic uncertainty and volatile policy swings coming out of Washington. Muni yields rose 12 to 19 basis points, depending on the scale, while…
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Kentucky’s Bellarmine University downgraded to B1 by Moody’s
Bellarmine University had very weak debt service coverage levels in the last three fiscal years, Moody’s Ratings said.AdobeStock Bellarmine University was downgraded to B1 from Ba3 by Moody’s Ratings, affecting about $60 million of outstanding debt. The outlook is negative. The downgrade on the Kentucky-based school stemmed from declining enrollment, persistent use of reserves, and…
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Muni yields rise but outperform UST selloff after FOMC rate cut
&amp;lt;img src=”https://public.flourish.studio/visualisation/20863349/thumbnail” width=”100%” alt=”chart visualization” /&amp;gt; Municipals lost more ground Wednesday, but outperformed a selloff in the U.S. Treasury market, after the Federal Open Market Committee signaled fewer rate cuts on the horizon, with a likely pause in January. Equities also sold off, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average hitting a 10-day losing streak, the…
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PFM adds former Philadelphia budget director
Robert McDermott, the former Philadelphia budget director, has joined PFM as a director for its workforce consulting team. PFM Robert McDermott, the former Philadelphia budget director, has joined PFM as a director for its workforce consulting team. McDermott is the latest veteran of Philadelphia’s finance department to join PFM, part of the firm’s ongoing strategy to…
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Selling pressure weighs, pushing muni yields higher ahead of FOMC rates decision
&amp;lt;img src=”https://public.flourish.studio/visualisation/20844932/thumbnail” width=”100%” alt=”chart visualization” /&amp;gt; Municipals were weaker Tuesday as the New York City Transitional Finance Agency, the last sizable new-issue of 2024, priced for institutions, while U.S. Treasuries were mixed and equities saw large losses ahead of the expected FOMC rate decision Wednesday. That weakness that began last week continued through Tuesday, as…