Munis

With losses expected to be measured in the tens or hundreds of billions, the municipal finance industry begins to take stock of the Los Angeles-area wildfires.

The state will try to convince the rating agency to lift its debt to AA, to match the rating others have assigned.

It could be the year's largest unrated municipal bond deal.

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.

Wish lists for new or improved professional sports venues are piling up with Oklahoma City poised to vet financing proposals for a downtown basketball arena.

The Florida-based mining company failed to make $10 million in principal and interest payments due on Jan. 1. Florida had the largest number of defaults in 2024 at nine, per Municipal Market Analytics, Inc.

"It is the first step but that doesn't mean there's a second step," said John Bagley, the MSRB's chief market structure officer.

The legislative reconciliation process will move fast and cutting the budget is in vogue. As such, we must recalibrate our goals as an industry to reflect the new political paradigm.

The management team sees opportunity in pockets that other investors avoid, like American Dream, Midwestern private colleges and senior living facilities.

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

Wiles retired from Los Angeles County at year-end but will still influence the industry as a member of the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board.

Sizable deals for next week include $1.3 billion of real estate transfer tax revenue bonds from the Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority and $996.335 million of second series revenue bonds from the San Francisco International Airport.

The deal will refinance some debt and take out new debt to fund an electronic records transition, renovate spaces and buy equipment.

The largest issuance the Local Government Commission approved was $387 million of bonds for Mecklenburg County.

Congressional observers are casting a skeptical eye about the productivity of the new 119th Congress that is already defined by ideological differences separating factions within the majority party.

The comments come after SEC asked for feedback on the collection of information in Rule 15c2-12.

After selling $500 million of revenue bonds in 2023, the turnpike authority could return to the market later this month with a $1.3 billion issue.

Kim Olsan, senior fixed-income portfolio manager at NewSquare Capital, discusses the municipal market's performance, the impact of rising yields and inflation, and the evolving role of ETFs and separately managed accounts as the market braces for record supply in 2025.

The Indiana Municipal Power Agency will issue $268.3 million of power supply system revenue bonds with a mix of new money and refunding debt.