Buy side

Highmark, Inc. and state lawmakers are pushing the Pennsylvania Insurance Department to step up its review of the West Penn Allegheny Health System affiliation, but the agency wants more details.

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel's announcement that the city will explore leasing Midway International Airport to private operators came with a full court press to portray any eventual deal as a good one for taxpayers.

Some state attorneys general are hailing settlements with major tobacco companies resolving a dispute over payments, but Herbert J. Sims analyst Dick Larkin believes tobacco companies may be the big winners.

The tradition of extremely low issuance for the week between Christmas and New Year's continues this December as the municipal bond market should see paltry activity next week.

The Illinois Finance Authority board signed off on a $90 million financing package for Clare Oaks continuing care retirement community in suburban Chicago as part of a Chapter 11 reorganization plan submitted by bondholders.

This week, municipal bond funds saw their largest outflows since January 2011 and the fifth largest on record.

Municipal bond issuance is expected to increase to $458.0 billion in 2013, a 9% jump from the $420.3 billion of munis issued in 2012 through mid-December, according to the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association's annual survey of dealer firms.

Chicago is exploring a second try at privatizing its Midway International Airport, Mayor Rahm Emanuel's administration announced Friday.

The tax-exempt market struggled throughout most of the week with yields jumping as dealers cleaned out inventory ahead of year-end and buyers were fed up with record-low yields.

As the market prepares to ring in 2013, municipal experts have mostly positive expectations for interest rates, credit quality, investor demand, and the viability of municipals' tax exemption in the New Year, mixed with some lingering apprehensions about the fiscal cliff and overseas turmoil.

Holders of bankrupt American Airlines' New York City airport debt are weighing a settlement offer that would pave the way for the carrier to assume its lease at John F. Kennedy International Airport.

Municipal experts say 2012 turned out to be a banner year for municipal bonds — as both demand and mutual fund inflows were strong and the market hit record levels.

A plan proposed by the National Institutes of Health could pressure United States universities, according to a report from Fitch Ratings.

After two hefty weeks, issuance in the municipal bond market should enter its holiday period and ride out the rest of the year.

The municipal market slogged through a long week of sell-offs as too much supply flooded into it all at once, prompting increases in muni bond indexes.

Investors sent money to municipal bond mutual funds for a sixth consecutive week, though at a decreased pace.

Trident Municipal Research, LLC and Savader Asset Advisors LLC have formed a strategic alliance to offer joint research content and service to investors.

Tax-exempt money market funds amassed $2.92 billion in new cash as total net assets rose to $275.72 billion in the week ended Dec. 10, according to The Money Fund Report, a service of iMoneyNet.com.

Fitch Ratings has assigned a stable outlook for 2013 to the colleges and universities sector, based on demand and enrollment, liquidity, and risk management.

Representatives from a rating agency and the investment community weighed in on the dramatic changes affecting the higher education business model at The Bond Buyer 501(c)3 conference.