Markets

The Chicago Business Barometer declined to 65.7 in January from a revised 67.8 in December.

Municipal bond market participants await details of President Trump’s plans for infrastructure spending.

The employment cost index fell slightly in the fourth quarter to an expected 0.6% increase.

The December Midwest Economy Index climbed to 0.43 from a revised 0.17 in November, first reported 0.22, the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago said Wednesday.

Private-sector employment increased by 234,000 in January, on a seasonally adjusted basis, ADP estimated Wednesday.

During his State of the Union address, President Trump also embraced the recent call by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce -- without mentioning them –- to reduce the permitting approval process to two years or less for infrastructure projects.

There's an expectation that President Trump will address infrastructure spending in Tuesday's State of the Union address, and he has the attention of the muni market.

Several big deals hit the primary on Tuesday as the municipal bond market weakened ahead of President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address and the FOMC meeting.

With infrastructure expected to be a hot topic at the State of the Union address, the municipal bond market wants to know if bonds will play a role.

Texas service sector activity “continued to increase in January, albeit at a slower pace than last month,” according to business executives responding to the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas' Texas Service Sector Outlook Survey, as the revenue index plunged to 12.8 from 24.4.