Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico's efforts to stave off a growing financial crisis could turn its bonds into junk-rated debt, BlackRock's municipal bonds group said Thursday.

Puerto Rico's economic and financial leaders, seeking to reassure investors in its municipal debt, unveiled a five-year plan to diversify the economy.

Bond insurers are poised to withstand the possible fallout from ratings downgrades or defaults on the industry's $16 billion of Puerto Rico bond exposure.

Puerto Rico officials sought to quell bankruptcy concerns over the commonwealth's issuers, calling such an outcome "completely out of the question" on an investor call Tuesday afternoon.

Puerto Rico now believes first quarter revenues were up 5.4% rather than 4.4% as had been announced on Oct. 7.

Puerto Rico's presentation of its financial and economic plans will be open to all this afternoon.

Puerto Rico chose Barclays and RBC Capital Markets to underwrite its bond sales in the rest of the year, after secondary market yields for its debt soared to double digits.

Massachusetts is investigating the sale of Puerto Rico bonds by three major financial firms.

The White House and the United States Treasury will introduce ideas to promote Puerto Rican economic growth in the next few months.

Puerto Rico's government revenues rose 18% in September from a year earlier and were up 4.4% in the first quarter of this fiscal year, the commonwealth's Treasury Department reported.

Moody's Investors Service downgraded the Puerto Rico Sales Tax Financing Corportation’s (COFINA) senior sales tax bonds to A2 from Aa3.

UBS AG is investigating the behavior of its financial advisors in Puerto Rico.

The federal government is closely monitoring the deteriorating fiscal health of Puerto Rico and is considering ways it might assist the struggling island, an effort complicated by political headwinds and the unique status of U.S. territories and their bonds.

Standard & Poor's changed the outlook on Puerto Rico's sales tax bonds to negative from stable.

Puerto Rico's economy continued its contraction in August, declining 0.4% from July and 5.4% from August 2012.

Bonds issued by the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and related entities have experienced dramatic price swings since mid-August, amid shifting expectations about future supply and a growing media spotlight on the island's budget fundamentals.

Puerto Rico's government plans to expand its ability to issue its sales tax-backed COFINA bonds.

Puerto Rico government revenues in July and August beat projections by 1.3%, according to the Puerto Rico Treasury Department.

UBS Financial Services of Puerto Rico faces the threat of a legal action for allegedly giving incomplete and deceptive information to clients, 16 months after the unit of the Swiss banking giant paid a fine to the Securities and Exchange Commission to settle a claim it misled Puerto Rico investors.

A Puerto Rico P3 board has approved the formation of a public private partnership for constructing a Caguas-San Juan commuter rail system.