Oliver Renick

Outflows from municipal bond mutual funds continued into a 15th straight week, with withdrawals in the period ended Sept. 4 amounting to $1.31 billion, according to Lipper FMI data.

Rising interest rates would be a boon to housing finance agencies as they look to bounce back from a slump brought on by the 2008 financial crisis, Standard & Poor’s said in a report.

The Municipal Analysts Group of New York's new board members are preparing for a season of speaking events that will assess turbulent times in the municipal industry.

Municipal bond mutual funds got a reprieve after three weeks of increasingly large outflows, with just $1.74 billion withdrawals in the week ended Aug. 28, according to Lipper FMI numbers.

Bond insurers including Assured Guaranty and MBIA Inc. are on the hook for almost $16 billion of Puerto Rico debt as a new administration there aims to curb speculation that the U.S. territory could go the way of Detroit.

The municipal market trudged along on Monday, hindered by negative credit headlines and investor reluctance following the 13th straight week of outflows from mutual bond funds. Vacationing traders the week before Labor Day added to the level of inactivity.

The market for tax-exempt bonds remained stalled through the afternoon on Monday, continuing a sluggish morning that saw investors hesitate on the heels of the 13th straight week of outflows from municipal bonds funds.

The municipal market continued to tread water Monday after a 13th straight week of outflows from municipal bond funds kept wary investors waiting for upcoming issuance. Traders on vacation the week before Labor Day also added to the late-summer doldrums.

Municipal bond mutual funds that report weekly had a $2.14 billion outflow in the week ended Aug. 21, according to Lipper FMI numbers, the 13th consecutive week of investor withdrawal and the biggest reduction this month.

Insured municipal bonds are outperforming general obligation debt as investors place more value on guarantees amid falling bond prices and default concerns sparked by Detroit’s bankruptcy.

Ambac Financial Group, the bond insurer recently emerged from bankruptcy, reported $206 million of net income in the two months after the company's exit from Chapter 11, and $3.1 billion in income during the prior month.

A New York state appeals court in Manhattan Tuesday reversed an earlier ruling and dismissed Syncora Guarantee's lawsuit accusing JPMorgan Chase of defrauding the bond insurer by misrepresenting a structured finance transaction.

Standard & Poor's Rating Services affirmed Build America Mutual's AA stable rating, S&P's highest score for an active bond insurer.

Monoline insurers that have hit rock bottom are positioned for a rebound that could see them wrapping up to 30% of new issue supply in some ratings groups, Citigroup Global Markets said.

Low interest rates and investor skepticism continue to hold financial guarantors down, even as insurers introduced new and evolving business models to rejuvenate the market.

Assured Guaranty Ltd reported operating income of $98 million, or $0.52 a share, in the second quarter, down from $114 million, or $0.61 a share, in the second quarter of 2012.

MBIA Inc. said its adjusted pre-tax loss widened to $160 million in the second quarter, from $152 million a year earlier and a $20 million loss in the first quarter.

Ambac Assurance Corp will make supplemental payments on some policies in a segregated account that the company established to hold troubled liabilities during its bout with bankruptcy.

New-issue municipal volume is set to rebound in the coming week with $8.4 billion in scheduled deals, including a variety of issues ranging from Peurto Rico Electric bonds to Washington State various-purpose GO bonds.

Assured Guaranty's Municipal Assurance Corp., the company's muni-only bond insurance business launched last month, wrapped its first deal.