Markets

The Illinois Finance Authority will go to market with $850 million of revenue and refunding bonds for the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency next week.

What's happening to the muni market is the "confluence of modest selling (via fund outflows and retail perhaps pausing during tax season); a heavy new issue calendar; and very thin near-term reinvestment expectations," said Matt Fabian, a partner at Municipal Market Analytics.

Another big deal from a major borrower is moving forward after Rochester's City Council last week approved a conduit bond sale for the Mayo Clinic.

The state treasurer is seeking someone willing to take the role on a permanent basis.

Colleges and universities have already begun hiring freezes and spending cuts, dialing back research and rescinding offers to Ph.D. candidates, the rating agency said.

Lighter supply, at an estimated $7.9 billion, and still-attractive valuations should allow for solid muni performance this week, said J.P. Morgan strategists.

An Oklahoma agency is borrowing $1.15 billion through an unrated tax-exempt Public Finance Authority bond deal to build and equip a tire factory backed by Finnish interests.

Municipal bond issuance for the week of March 24 is at $7.923 billion, with $6.673 billion of negotiated deals and $1.251 billion of competitive deals on tap.

The Chicago Public Schools ended the week no closer than it started to answering the question of how or if a scheduled pension payment will be made.

The Los Angeles-based fund manager has expanded into debt financing to offer affordable housing developer clients a lower cost of capital.