Investments

Nearly all The Bond Buyer's weekly yield indexes increased the week ended Feb. 21.

Flows to municipal bond mutual funds remained positive for a seventh straight week, but only modestly so, recording $292 million in inflows for the week of Feb. 20.

President Obama's proposal for a Build-America-Bonds-like program for infrastructure has its roots in a proposal by the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority, and some infrastructure analysts say it represents a pro-business pivot from the White House.

Moody's Investors Service has a negative outlook on local governments, which continue to be pressured in the slow and uneven economic recovery.

Tax exempt money market funds decreased $1.88 billion and total net assets settled at $278.20 billion in the week ended Feb. 18.

A new Reason Foundation study analyzing road trends over the past two decades challenges claims of "crumbling infrastructure," which have been used by transportation advocates and policymakers as justification for everything from higher taxes to new or expanded bond programs.

ARKANSAS

ARKANSAS

Philip Fischer's career starts and ends with numbers. It's led to public finance and Merrill Lynch, where he ascended to the head of muni bond research. It continues today at eBooleant Consulting and with the release of his book, "Investing in Municipal Bonds: How to Balance Risk and Reward for Success in Today's Bond Market" in January.

In the State of the Union Address, President Obama laid out a plan for stronger regulation of colleges and universities, which Moody's Investors Service calls a credit negative in the near term.

ARKANSAS

ILLINOIS

Fitch Ratings revised its outlook to negative from stable on Xavier University, a private, Jesuit institution based in Cincinnati. The ratings agency affirmed its A-minus rating on the school.

The board of Wayne State University last week approved a plan to sell $92 million of general revenue bonds this spring to finance new construction, including a new building in Detroit.

IOWA

CALIFORNIA

A pair of large water deals will flood the primary market with nearly $1 billion this week as part of more than $6 billion in total new volume that is expected to be priced on the heels of last week's market firmness.

Federal, state and local departments of transportation have so far obligated $7 billion in federal highway funds during fiscal year 2013, a 56% increase over the same period last year, according to a new report from the American Road & Transportation Builders Association.

Amidst concerns among market participants of a 'great rotation' out of fixed income into equities, Barclays strategists released a report Thursday assessing whether this might happen in the muni market.

Table as of: 02/14/2013 13:34 PM Invisible Supply Issuer and purpose Amount