Investments

Among NABL's asks from Congress is to introduce a direct-pay taxable bond program through a new proposed bill.

The municipal bond market is taking it slow when it comes to new issuance as buyers and sellers move cautiously in the shadows of COVID-19.

Banks, asset managers, and other financial institutions need liquidity. This has created an unprecedented buying opportunity, with yields not seen since the financial crisis and then only seen for a short period of time.

The office of Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul informed a Cook County court it will not allow the Edelweiss lawsuit to be dismissed on public disclosure grounds.

The Fed will help the muni market navigate the short-term pain caused by coronavirus via direct purchases of bonds on the short end. However, the Fed will effectively hand off the responsibility to choose winners and losers to state officials, a move the market generally greeted positively.

The city is projecting a $100 million deficit in its current budget once the public health crisis caused by COVID-19 eases, Mayor Mike Duggan said.

The market appears to be moving toward some semblance of normal conditions as the new-issue pricings and moderating bid volume create a more stable tone.

Moody's Investors Service revised the Pennsylvania regional health system to negative citing revenue risks from COVID-19.

Stay-at-home orders and school closures driven by COVID-19 have cut traffic in half or more on many toll roads and bridges.

The council wants to focus on the social safety net in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Financial advisors in the municipal bond market accumulated $74.48 billion, up from the $65.03 billion in the first three months of 2019. The top four places remained the same but the rest of the top 10 all saw big changes.

Despite a muted month of March due to the COVID-19 pandemic which included two weeks of no negotiated deals, muni bond issuers still sold more long-term debt than they did during the first three months of 2019. Issuers accounted for a total of $84.87 billion of bonds throughout 2,119 transactions, compared to $75.84 billion in 1,809 deals in first quarter of 2019. The top 10 features five newcomers from a year ago, including the top spot.

Underwriters of municipal bonds did the majority of business during the first two months of the year, before COVID-19 swept the country with sickness and severe spreading. The top underwriters accounted for $87.84 billion of bonds throughout 2,119 transactions, compared to $75.84 billion in 1,809 deals in first quarter of 2019.

Laura Kelly is promoting the plan as an economic stimulus.

Moody's says the downturn in activity will put additional pressure on the Caa3-rated issuer.

Tax-exempt and taxable deals priced as dealers opened up their balance sheets to new issues while the market still awaits word from the Fed on coronavirus-led purchase programs.

Tuition revenue headwinds made worse by the COVID-19 pandemic cost New Jersey’s Rider University its investment grade rating.

State Departments of Transportation said $50 billion would provide states the ability to meet existing debt obligations.

Municipal market participants are confused, to say the least, about the Federal Reserve and its ability to buy long-term municipal securities. And there’s a good reason for the puzzlement.

More federal rescue moves are necessary for the nation’s largest mass transit system, according to the advocacy group Reinvent Albany.