Bonds

Jerome Powell, chairman of the US Federal ReserveAl Drago/Photographer: Al Drago/Bloomberg Inflation and unemployment are the two key data points the Federal Reserve leans on when setting monetary policy, but Fed Chair Jerome Powell flagged another potentially relevant metric: personal savings.  Powell said government measures of gross domestic income, or GDI, had been coming in

The municipal market muscled through this week by holding yields mostly steady as investors digested a large new-issue slate, heavy on tax-exempt paper, even as U.S. Treasuries were weaker until Friday’s session. Municipal triple-A yield curves closed out the week with few changes, valuations were little changed — though at attractive levels — and the

Minneapolis will bring general obligation bonds to market next week in a deal that includes funding to repair damage left by the 2020 riots after a police officer killed George Floyd. The city will sell $123.59 million of tax-exempt Series 2024 general obligation bonds via competitive sale Tuesday. The municipal advisor on the deal is

While Hurricane Helene could have short- and long-term impacts on government finances and the economy, observers say Florida’s hurricane catastrophe fund has sufficient funds to cover damages without requiring immediate replenishment. Meanwhile, for now, BofA still plans to price $233 million of water and wastewater revenue bonds for Tampa on Tuesday and $210 million of

As the election approaches, tax policy issues are moving to the fore including pass-through entity exemptions used to negate the effects of the cap on state and local tax deductions.  “If the SALT cap expires, then you’re going to see some states where they didn’t have this legislation, have to figure out what to do,

Samuel A. Ramirez & Co. has added public finance bankers in three separate offices as it continues to broaden its national reach. Cordelia Mendez joins as a vice president in the New York City office, Ayanna Louis-Charles joins as a senior vice president in south Florida and Courtney Okezie joins as a vice president in

Alabama Democratic Rep. Terri Sewell will take over as co-head of the House Municipal Finance Caucus as Maryland Democrat Rep. Dutch Ruppersberger retires at the end of his term. Sewell will take the caucus helm at a key time as Congress is expected to tackle tax policy next year in a debate that municipal bond

The Louisiana Bond Commission approved the sale of $620 million in aviation revenue bonds and $220 million in sales tax bonds and modified conditions for up to $1 billion in gas and fuels tax bonds it previously authorized. The commission consented to the sale of up to $575 million in general airport revenue refunding bonds

New Mexico’s Bernalillo County Board of Commissioners approved its biggest-ever issuance of industrial revenue bonds on Tuesday with an up to $942 million conduit deal for a solar cell manufacturing facility. Proceeds from the taxable debt will help finance an 834,000-square-foot facility in the Mesa del Sol industrial development area for Ebon Solar that officials

Dan Callahan joined UMB Bank’s capital markets division as a senior vice president and public finance banker, the bank announced last week. Based in Austin, Callahan will oversee sales and business development, focusing on “UMB’s continued growth in the Texas municipal market through enhanced offerings in school municipal financing that will deliver sustainable results for

Law firm Sherman & Howard will merge with Taft effective Jan. 1, in a move aimed at extending their combined public finance geographical reach. The merged group will be positioned to serve public finance clients across an expanded footprint and beyond, the law firms said in a statement.  “With this merger, we are deepening the

Bond-financed redevelopment underpins Kansas City, Missouri’s plan to tackle decades-old blight and environmental issues that go back further in the Historic Northeast neighborhood. Clay County Commissioner Scott Wagner, previously a Kansas City councilman, told The Bond Buyer that “just the sheer magnitude” of this redevelopment project presented a challenge, but it stands a chance of

Moody’s Ratings revised the outlook on New Mexico’s Aa2 rating to positive from stable, while downgrading ratings on certain state transportation and severance tax bonds in the wake of a methodology update review.  The positive outlook, which affects $521 million of outstanding general obligation bonds, reflects Moody’s view “the state’s strong financial position, reflected in

Municipals were steady to start the week while the focus moved to the hefty primary slate as several deals priced bonds for retail to good demand. U.S. Treasuries were slightly weaker and equities closed the session in the black. The two-year muni-to-Treasury ratio Monday was at 64%, the three-year at 66%, the five-year at 66%,

Enjoy complimentary access to top ideas and insights — selected by our editors. Career moves are still heating up even as the fourth quarter approaches, and the industry gets more settled following Citi’s exit from the municipal bond market and UBS’s exit from the negotiated underwriting business at the end of 2023.  Chicago Transit Authority

Tampa, Florida’s sales and utility tax bonds were upgraded to Aa1 from Aa3 by Moody’s Ratings and the outlook is stable. The upgrade affects Series 2016 and 2020 sales tax refunding and improvement bonds and Series 2012A and C utilities tax and Series 2010A & B utility tax revenue bonds. “That’s great news, and it

Despite the pressure on U.S. Treasuries this week following the Federal Reserve’s 50 basis point rate cut, municipals closed out the week on track to post positive returns for the fourth consecutive month, the first time since 2021. Triple-A municipal yield curves were lightly traded and little changed while Treasuries saw small improvements for the

Federal Reserve Board Governor Michelle Bowman.Julia Nikhinson/Bloomberg The Federal Reserve cited slower price growth and a softer labor market in its decision to lower interest rates by a half percentage point this week, but one policymaker sees those trends differently.  Fed Gov. Michelle Bowman voted against the decision Wednesday, noting that she would have preferred

The death knell isn’t ringing for the tax exemption on municipal bonds, according to a panel at the National Association of Bond Lawyers conference, at least not yet — although the panel suggested the industry remind lawmakers of the role bonds play in their communities. The exemption remains an issue as policymakers will need to

The House is expected to be working the weekend in order to bring a vote early next week on the continuing resolution, the funding package that is Congress’ best bet on keeping the government open after the fiscal year ends Sept. 30. Republican Speaker of the House Mike Johnson’s six month funding package failed on