Buy side

CHICAGO - Chicago will hold its first-ever investor conference next month as new Mayor Rahm Emanuel and his chief financial officer, Lois Scott, seek to bolster the city's strained fiscal image with the buyers of its debt.

Tax-exempt money market funds lost nearly half of what they gained last week, as investors yanked $2.63 billion in the week ended Sept. 12 and total net assets fell to $294.33 billion, according to the Money Fund Report, a service of iMoneyNet.com.

With Labor Day behind it, the municipal market will see a big surge in new deals this week, with estimated issuance rising to $4.65 billion, close to the weekly average this year.

Munis exercised a run-of-the-mill pattern this week as tax-exempts followed the broader rally in Treasuries at a lag.

Tax-free money market funds are back in positive territory this week after regaining nearly all of what they lost last week.

Municipal bond yields are at or near all-time lows, but it's no thanks to muni mutual funds.

Despite a Labor Day holiday-shortened week, the municipal market could see new issuance almost double from last week.

Outflows continued among tax-exempt money market funds this week as investors withdrew $1.72 billion and total net assets declined to $295.25 billion in the week ended Aug. 29, according to the Money Fund Report, a service of iMoneyNet.com.

Municipal investors were on the sidelines this week, perplexed and uncertain about what their next move should be.

Every bond has its season. In the current environment of ultra-low rates and a steep municipal yield curve, the sun is shining on premium bonds.

Kicker bonds offer unique benefits depending on whether you are a short-term or a long-term buyer. But each strategy carries its own risks.

CHICAGO — After a slow 2010, capital spending by nonprofit health care borrowers will likely remain low through 2015 amid a still-weak economy and the uncertain impact of the new federal health care law, according to Fitch Ratings.

As rating agencies seek to provide more transparency and regain accountability on how they rate credits, Standard & Poor's has issued a report stating how it will suspend ratings for U.S. public finance issuers.

The municipal market can expect to see $1.2 billion in new issuance this week, down dramatically from last week's revised $4.42 billion as the market takes a rest before Labor Day.

Investors pulled money from municipal bond mutual funds for a fifth consecutive week.

The week ending Aug. 24 saw $148 million in outflows from muni bond funds that report their flows weekly, according to Lipper FMI.

When Treasuries run, munis jog. That's the usual trend. But this week's Bond Buyer indexes suggest the muni market backed up quite a bit more than Treasuries on concerns of diminished demand and the prospect of post-Labor Day supply.

Even amid record-low muni yields, new issuance is expected to take a hit this week, with $3.65 billion of new money coming to market, down from last week’s revised $4.72 billion.

Plenty of scary headlines were circulating in the global marketplace this week, prompting investors to flock to high-grade fixed income.

CHICAGO — St. Petersburg, Fla.-based Raymond James & Associates is hoping to carve out a bigger chunk of senior-manager business in the Midwest with two new public finance hires in Chicago, one to bolster the firm's local government team here and the other to focus on large governmental issuers.