Markets

When Standard & Poor's downgraded Jefferson County, Ala.'s school warrants to D, some people said the action was misleading and others were confused.

Outflows from weekly reporting municipal bond mutual funds persisted for the 30th straight week, at $1.71 billion.

Heavy outflows from municipal bond mutual funds persisted, Lipper FMI numbers for the week of Dec. 18 showed.

The Bond Buyer's weekly yield indexes were mixed in the week ended Dec. 19.

Battered by rising interest rates and credit concerns in 2013, the muni market may face additional obstacles next year as regulatory limits on broker dealers could crimp liquidity.

Moody's Investors Service is maintaining a stable outlook for public power utilities in 2014, citing modest growth in demand and low volatility in natural gas prices.

Volume is expected to trail off to less than $3 billion this week in what will be the last five full trading sessions of 2013 in which a pair of Northeast deals will lead an otherwise skimpy slate of new issuance in the primary market ahead of a holiday hiatus next week.

Muni bond mutual funds struggled through their 29th straight week of outflows, at $1.90 billion for the week ended Dec. 11.

Municipal bond mutual funds recorded heavy outflows, marking the 29th straight week money has left funds, Lipper FMI numbers showed.

Improved issuer disclosure breeds investor confidence which in turn boosts Massachusetts' bond ratings, according to state Treasurer Steven Grossman.