Markets News from Bond Buyer

The Indiana Financing Authority is the biggest entry on 2025's largest negotiated calendar with $1.5 billion of Indiana University Health system revenue bonds.

The $44 million of unrated bonds, placed only with qualified investors, feature 9.5% coupons.

With higher yields and ratios, many participants say investors should be taking advantage of current levels.

Chicago goes to market next week with $517.95 million of taxable and tax-exempt general obligation bonds following a downward outlook revision from Fitch.

When Chicago barred media from its investor conference, it told journalists the policy aligned with peer municipalities' practices. The facts are less clear.

Supply has weighed on munis to some extent over the past few weeks, as week after week issuance tops $10 billion, said Jeremy Holtz, a portfolio manager at Income Research + Management.

Two Midwest schools in the municipal bond market this month illustrate the range of funding challenges facing higher education under the Trump administration.

Muni yields were bumped up to eight basis points, depending on the curve, on Tuesday, but for most of last week, U.S. rates sold off on the heels of passed legislation, said Barclays strategists Mikhail Foux and Grace Cen.

Issuers routinely refund 5% bonds in year 10, and the resulting savings can be significant. It is notable that although refunding is typically associated with declining interest rates, 5% bonds are refunded even if rates rise.

"We're seeing some of the additional instability and other things come into play," said Dan Genter, CEO of Genter Capital Management.

"Light demand" for Wednesday's 20-year Treasury bond auction "propelled yields to the nosebleeds and equities to the basement," said José Torres, senior economist at Interactive Brokers.

Samantha Funk will step up as new head of public finance at PNC after Rob Dailey retires at the end of July.

The "risk to the tax exemption appears to have dropped sharply as of last week ... taking with it the hypothetical risk of a supply surge ahead of any end-date for borrowers' exemption access," said Matt Fabian, a partner at Municipal Market Analytics.

Chicago is "diligently preparing" to sell debt, now that the bond market has mostly recovered from April's turmoil, Chief Financial Officer Jill Jaworski said.

"Munis are no longer moving on headlines; they're reacting to rates and supply," which is playing out again Monday after a choppy March and April, said James Pruskowski, chief investment officer at 16Rock Asset Management.

Municipals were cut up four basis points, depending on the curve, through noon.

Issuance for the week of May 19 is estimated at $11.667 billion.

At a Bond Buyer conference in Atlanta, industry leaders talked about tariff turmoil, the tax-exemption, weather resiliency, infrastructure and more. 

A couple of "bond-friendly" economic reports released Thursday could encourage the Federal Reserve to reduce interest rates in the near future, some analysts argued.

For most investors, partnership matters, said Jamie Doffermyre, head of public finance syndicate and origination at Truist Securities.