Midwest

S&P dropped the the nation's second-most-populous county — one of many Illinois governments struggling with retirement plan funding — to A-plus from AA-minus.

Demand for municipal bonds is much stronger in 2020 than it was to end 2019, illustrated by record inflows into the asset class in the latest reporting week.

The last-ditch attempt to settle Preston Hollow Capital's lawsuit against Nuveen failed this week.

Fargo finance director Kent Costin said the downgrade was expected given the decline in construction activity in 2019.

Political support lagged strong private interest in a potential privatization deal for the St. Louis airport.

Martin Arrick, a managing director at S&P Ratings and its longtime not-for-profit healthcare group leader, will retire on Jan. 15.

The authority is making an investor push ahead of two upcoming deals.

If regulatory agencies approve the transaction, the acquisition will expand Beaumont's hospital count to 12 and increase total revenue to $6.1 billion.

The Palmyra-Eagle Area School District says it will run out of operating funds in the next school year.

Two rating agencies lowered their outlook for University Hospitals to stable from positive.