California

Fiona Ma delivered speeches Monday at The Bond Buyer California Public Finance conference and California Debt and Investment Advisory Commission pre-conference.

Monday's opening panel of The Bond Buyer California Public Finance conference in Los Angeles was an insiders' look at muni market challenges and opportunity.

The Bond Buyer conference, held online in 2020 and 2021 because of the pandemic, returns in person Monday in Los Angeles for the first time since 2019.

Outflows from municipal bond mutual funds receded as investors pulled $1.090 billion out of funds in the latest week, versus the $3.416 billion of outflows the prior week, according to Refinitiv Lipper data.

Richmond issued $154.1 million in pension obligation bonds in a refunding that terminates swaps, ends a county intercept, and extends the final maturity.

The muni market may get a temporary boost of support this week as investors received $18 billion of maturing and called bond proceeds on Sept. 1.

Baker Tilly will fold specialty consulting firm Management Partners into its public sector practice next month.

The 30-member syndicate plans to begin retail order pricing Wednesday with institutional sales planned for Sept. 8 on the new money and refunding GOs.

Many market players have revised their supply projections downward since rising interest rates have slowed down refunding and taxable volumes and general market volatility has stopped some issuers from participating.

Los Angeles' debt manager says the mandate will not change the already inclusive processes it uses to hire financial teams to work on the city's debt.

Cervantes, who joined the board as a member earlier this year, retired from Stifel in October 2020.

Raul Amezcua, who once led Stifel's California and Arizona banking teams, hired several key bankers at Ramirez & Co. since joining the firm early last year.

The state is heavily dependent on personal income taxes, which have dropped the most.

Kosmont firm has rebranded and brought on two L.A.-area heavy hitters in public finance.

New-money volume was off in the Golden State and across the Far West, but refunding volume was down even more.

Fitch is bulking up its public finance group with the addition of six municipal bond analysts for its offices in San Francisco, New York and Austin.

The finance team on the Western Placer Waste Management Authority deal hopes to benefit from an improving market with increased inflows.

S&P revised the state's outlook to positive in September, which gives it a one-in-three chance of a ratings boost over the two-year outlook period.

Expected voter turnout for the midterm election will likely compel other cities to join Ontario, California, in placing tax and bond measures on November's ballot.

The agency overseeing what has been called the country's most expensive infrastructure project hopes to secure $8 billion in federal dollars and $4.2 billion of state borrowing for the first leg of the bullet train.