News and Information from Bond Buyer

Prices of top-rated municipal bonds finished higher on Tuesday, traders said, as yields on some maturities fell by as much as four basis points.

The Florida Legislature plans to complete a special session Friday with a final vote on a budget for fiscal 2016 with no Medicaid expansion, avoiding a state government shutdown.

Louisiana lawmakers struck a deal with Gov. Bobby Jindal late Thursday that paved the way for a $24.4 billion state budget to be approved.

Senate Democrats said they want progress on a highway bill before the current short-term fix expires July 31.

A Michigan appeals court ruling clipped the authority of the state’s emergency managers in the first case examining the extent of their power under the state’s law for distressed local governments.

Discount municipal bonds are much more sensitive to interest rates than reported by standard analytics systems. Investors who rely on these analytics will be in for an unpleasant surprise when rates rise.

The Alaska legislature passed a budget that avoided a possible government shutdown next month, though the state still faces a major shortfall and will need to take action if oil revenues do not improve.

The Chicago City Council votes Wednesday on a $1.1 billion general obligation restructuring that helps the city resolve a liquidity crisis driven by its downgrade to junk while also providing a big dose of budget relief.

Prices of top-rated municipal bonds were higher at mid-session, traders said, as yields on some maturities fell by as much as three basis points. In the primary market, Baltimore County, Md., sold two high-quality issues totaling $168 million in the competitive sector.

The Treasury Department Tuesday auctioned $35 billion of four-week bills at a 0.000% high yield, a price of 100.000000.

SJ Advisors LLC has added Mark Perry and Joanne Thorndike, who will be joining the firm as managing directors. Both Perry and Thorndike previously held the same position at BLX Group, were they advised borrowers on access to the municipal bond market.

While gross domestic product is a helpful measure of the rough size of a state’s economy and its various sectors, we prefer other measures.

Rhode Island General Treasurer Seth Magaziner is nominating Robert Benson, Marie Langlois and Marcia Reback to the State Investment Commission and Marianne Monte to the State Retirement Board.

Municipal bond traders were waiting for new supply to come to market as they watch yields on top-rated munis move lower.

Tuesday, June 16 Issuer St Description Amount

Tuesday, June 16 Issuer St Description Amount

Week Of June 15 Issuer St Description Amount

Week Of June 15 Issuer St Description Amount

Indicator Last Report Forecast Actual Empire State Manufacturing May: 3.09 June: 6.00 June: -1.98 Industrial Production April: -0.3% May: +0.3% May: -0.2% Capacity Utilization April: 78.2 May: 78.3 May: 78.1 NAHB Housing Index May: 54.0 June: 56 June: 59