Buy side

A bill proposing that the rates of the Florida Municipal Power Agency should be regulated by a state agency could jeopardize its credit ratings, according to Moody Investors Service.

As cash-strapped governments like Illinois and Chicago eye non-traditional revenues like gambling and marijuana, economists and government officials warned that so-called sin taxes are no panacea for budget shortfalls.

A San Francisco-based airline's April Fool's joke triggered a disclosure notice on EMMA; the trustee for bonds issued for the airport in Branson, Mo. Wanted to be sure bondholders new that Virgin America was just kidding about its plans to serve Branson.

Despite the bankruptcy of its current operator, the Indiana Toll Road continues to show the benefits of privatization, as does the new $5.7 billion bid for the road, Wells Fargo says in a new report.

For the week ended April 2, the weekly average yield to maturity of the Bond Buyer Municipal Bond Index, which is based on 40 long-term bond prices, increased two basis points to 4.22% from 4.20% in the week ended March 26.

For the first time in 12 weeks, municipal bond funds reported a cash outflow as retail investors cashed out ahead of the April 15 tax filing date.

As the municipal market was winding down on Thursday ahead of the Good Friday observance, traders and underwriter were preparing for an upcoming $871.26 million sale of revenue bonds from the North Texas Tollway Authority.

Municipals offer higher quality than corporate bonds, tax advantages, diversity, as well as higher yield and less duration risk than their Treasury counterparts, two municipal analysts said in reports this week.

If estimates hold, the market is heading into a 12th week in a row with supply more than $8 billion, as issuers look to take advantage of historically low interest rates.

The weekly average yield to maturity of The Bond Buyer Municipal Bond Index, which is based on 40 long-term bond prices, decreased five basis points to 4.20% from 4.25% for the week ended March 19.

Franklin Templeton Investments filed its first brief on March 25 appealing the ruling that allowed Stockton to exit bankruptcy.

The Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund will explore using taxable munis and reinsurance to provide $2.2 billion in liquidity for the upcoming Atlantic hurricane season.

Tobacco bonds may be on their way to the biggest volume since 2007, led by Wednesday's $1.7 billion sale from California, as issuers refinance amid a decline in smoking that's cut deeply into revenue.

Within two to three months Ipreo will serve as point of origination for CUSIP requests, the companies said.

Municipal analysts blame the lull in municipal high-yield investment on a range of factors, from uncertainty over interest rates to bulging supply in the investment-grade sector.

Weekly volume is expected to exceed $8 billion again, with most of the bigger deals related to education.

The weekly average yield to maturity of The Bond Buyer Municipal Bond Index, which is based on 40 long-term bond prices, decreased six basis points to 4.25% from 4.31% for the week ended March 12.

Bel Air Investment Advisors LLC opens, a Los Angeles-area firm that manages $7 billion in assets including many munis, opened a San Francisco office as part of a larger expansion plan.

Fitch Ratings last year had more positive ratings than negative ones in United States public finance for the first time since 2008.

A federal ruling against states may set a precedent for risky local spending on broadband, credit analysts said.