Dream weaver: Muni market set for N.J. megamall bond deal

Municipal bond traders will see the bonds that will finance the long-awaited New Jersey megamall American Dream hit the market on Wednesday in an unrated sale that has garnered a lot of attention.

Secondary market
U.S. Treasuries were stronger on Wednesday ahead of the Federal Reserve's monetary policy statement. Most market observers believe the Federal Open Market Committee will announce a 25 basis point interest rate hike in the afternoon.

The yield on the two-year Treasury fell to 1.30% from 1.36% on Monday, the 10-year Treasury yield dropped to 2.12% from 2.20% while the yield on the 30-year Treasury bond decreased to 2.80% from 2.86%.

Top-quality municipal bonds finished mixed on Tuesday. The yield on the 10-year benchmark muni general obligation was unchanged from 1.88% on Monday, while the 30-year GO yield increased one basis point to 2.73% from 2.72%, according to the final read of Municipal Market Data's triple-A scale.

On Tuesday, the 10-year muni to Treasury ratio was calculated at 85.2%, compared with 85.0% on Monday, while the 30-year muni to Treasury ratio stood at 95.4% versus 94.8%, according to MMD.

MSRB: Previous session's activity
The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board reported 41,917 trades on Tuesday on volume of $7.98 billion.

Primary market
Goldman Sachs is set to price the Wisconsin Public Finance Authority’s $1.1 billion of revenue bonds for the mall project in East Rutherford, N.J.

The deal consists of $800 million of limited obligation PILOT revenue bonds and $300 million of limited obligation grant revenue bonds.

The deal is not rated.

The PFA is issuing the debt on behalf of the New Jersey Sports & Exposition Authority, which operates the Meadowlands District where the project is located.

Also on tap on Wednesday, Citigroup is set to price the Atlanta Development Authority’s $224 million of Series 2017 A-1 and A-2 senior healthcare facilities current interest revenue bonds for the Georgia Proton Treatment Center.

Since 2007, the Atlanta Development Authority has sold about $1.06 billion of securities with the most issuance occurring in 2015 when it sold $225 million.

The authority did not issue any bonds in 2008, 2011 or 2012.

BB-061517-MUN

Citi is also expected to price the city of Long Beach, Calif.’s $172 million of harbor revenue bonds.

The deal is rated AA by S&P Global Ratings and Fitch Ratings.

Bond Buyer reports 30-day visible supply
The Bond Buyer's 30-day visible supply calendar increased $213.3 million to $12.88 billion on Wednesday. The total is comprised of $1.22 billion of competitive sales and $7.83 billion of negotiated deals.

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