Lynne Funk

Municipals followed U.S. Treasuries firmer after markets reacted to the Moody's downgrade of several mid-sized U.S. banks. New issues saw good demand and repriced to lower yields as a result.

While triple-As were little changed the past two sessions, some damage was done last week, leaving market participants generally less optimistic for the final weeks of August.

Late summer is "rarely a good time for our asset class," Barclays strategists said, noting the municipal investment grade index lost money in August three years in a row, and 2023 seems to follow this trend.

This week kicks off a flip of calendar to the final month of the summer reinvestment season and one of the larger new-issue calendars of the year.

Municipals have continued outperforming, "building on the trend that started in late May," Barclays strategists Mikhail Foux, Clare Pickering and Mayur Patel said.

Strength that began on Tuesday and continued Wednesday marked the first sessions since early May for positive performance after a hefty selloff, noted Kim Olsan, senior vice president at FHN Financial.

The U.S. economy is "too resilient and this will force the Fed to not only deliver more tightening but also to keep rates higher for much longer," OANDA's Edward Moya said. NYC and Connecticut GOs on tap.

Refinitiv Lipper reported $847.068 million of outflows from municipal bond mutual funds, $420.675 million of which was high-yield.

In a supply-challenged market, foreign investors can play a role in buying taxable munis. 16Rock Asset Management's James Pruskowski discusses a 2023 reset in the muni market. Lynne Funk hosts (29 minutes)

Municipals were in the red to close out April, down 0.2%, per the Bloomberg Municipal Index, but are in the black 2.5% year-to-date.

James Pruskowski, a nearly 30-year veteran of BlackRock, will be CIO and head of business development for 16Rock Asset Management LLC, a newly formed affiliate of 16th Amendment Advisors LLC.

Rising interest rates, market volatility and the loss of business and revenue top the public finance industry's concerns for 2023.

Views from CreditSights' Patrick Luby, senior municipal strategist, and John Ceffalio, senior research analyst, on everything from mutual fund flows, the evolution of the retail investor, municipal bond volume and important credit implications from transit, higher ed, airports, high-yield and more. Lynne Funk hosts.

It's not just the "right" thing to do; it's good for business, say the Freda Johnson Award winners, Massachusetts Treasurer Deborah Goldberg and Ballard Spahr's Emilie Ninan. They discuss how diversifying the industry is key to growth and success. Lynne Funk hosts. 

Markets took the news that it will soon be appropriate to increase the Fed funds target rate at a slower pace as good news.

Nathaniel Singer, who has nearly four decades of experience in municipal derivatives and advisory space, has joined PFM.

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act provides billions in grants for state and local governments. The challenge now is how quickly and effectively they can spend it amid an inflation–fueled rising–rate environment.

Colleagues and competitors alike note his underwriting experience is unparalleled in the industry.

The plan reduces HTA's $6.4 billion of total claims by more than 80% and saves Puerto Rico more than $3 billion in debt service payments, the Oversight Board said.

While October is typically a busy issuance month, 2022 is not shaping up to be as more issuers are sidelined by volatility. The primary market will see another light calendar in the holiday-shortened week.