Capital markets

S&P Global Ratings downgraded Chicago's general obligation debt to BBB from BBB-plus, saying the 2025 budget fails to address a structural imbalance.

Trading in Los Angeles credits has become more volatile. An L.A. Department of Water and Power deal slated for Wednesday went day-to-day.

Williams, a former salesman and founder of A. H. Williams & Co., became a "giant" in the Pennsylvania muni world through relationships built on trust. 

The billion-dollar deal will be the first bonds backed by the tax since it was created in 2019.

The rating agency said the district's strong management helped boost its ratings ahead of an $806 million bond issuance slated for Jan. 22.

Analysts cited growth in the county's reserves, conservative budgeting and strong sales tax revenue as the county prepares to sell GO bonds.

Pressing issues like the shifts in banking teams at various firms following Citi's exit from the business to major ratings changes make the ranking.

BRIDGE Housing Corp. is the first to publicly offer tax-exempt bonds to finance construction of a new development, a 224-unit project in Portland, Oregon.

Investors pulled more from municipal bond mutual funds in the final reporting week of 2024, but high-yield reverted to inflows to close out the year, adding to the sector's outperformance overall.

Westchester County, New York, plans to issue roughly $189 million in general obligation bonds, with Fitch Ratings giving the debt its top rating of AAA.

San Francisco's "tepid" recovery from the pandemic was cited by Fitch.

Moody's Ratings said the 2025 budget that passed Chicago's City Council this month won't materially alter the credit profile of the city, which it rates Baa3.

The budgeting constraints transformed the state's finances and bond ratings. But critics say the policy's downsides include the stifling of needed investments. 

The bank's termination of its membership in the Net-Zero Banking Alliance ended a state review that could have led to a ban for governmental contracts.

Indianapolis-based Sycamore Advisors is building its quantitative muscle with two new experienced municipal finance hires in New York: Peter Orr and Ching Yin.

Moody's cited heavy reliance on reserves, potential for continued operating deficts, and a fall 2024 decline in enrollment as factors in the downgrade.

The central Texas city of Clyde said it issued tax and revenue anticipation notes with a 9.5% interest rate to repay its insurers after an Aug. 1 bond default.

Analysts warn the many one-time measures in the budget Mayor Brandon Johnson narrowly got through City Council will make the 2026 budget even harder.

Overall state and local government credit conditions will remain neutral, Fitch Ratings says, though some storm clouds may be on the horizon.

Most on the Street expect issuance to come in around $500 billion, but a few think volume will be much higher, primarily because of potential changes to the tax exemption. Most firms expect refunding volumes to also grow in 2025.