Public finance

A bipartisan group in Congress wants to fund transportation projects with an infrastructure bond bank supported by revenue from corporate tax code reforms.

With the help of mediators, Detroit reached a settlement with its police and fire retirees, one of the thorniest parts of the city's historic Chapter 9 bankruptcy.

Detroit bankruptcy Judge Steven Rhodes' decision to hire a municipal finance expert to review the city's bankruptcy plan attracted responses from five professionals, including a few well-known public finance figures.

FLORIDA

ILLINOIS

To grow and expand its platform of services, retirement and financial services provider TIAA-CREF has acquired Nuveen Investments in a $6.25 billion transaction expected to be completed by the end of 2014.

Detroit's proposed settlement with its unlimited-tax general obligation bondholders is a positive development for the bondholders and insurers that wrap the debt, Moody's Investors Service said in a comment released Monday.

NEW JERSEY

CALIFORNIA

With volume expected to return to its recent paltry levels this week, the municipal market will look to a $321 million sale of North Carolina general obligation bonds for direction.

Detroit's historic bankruptcy case gained momentum with court approval of a controversial interest-rate swaps settlement and a deal on its unlimited-tax general obligation bonds, but challenges still lay ahead, legal experts said.

Municipal funds reported the biggest inflows in seven weeks, as interest rate concerns faded and investors sought high yields.

ARKANSAS

ALABAMA

The Bond Buyer's muni bond indexes strengthened in the week ending April 3, as Treasury yields declined.

Tax-exempt money market funds increased total net assets by $1.58 billion to $270.38 billion in the week ended April 7, reversing recent weeks’ outflows, according to The Money Fund Report, a service of iMoneyNet.com.

Municipal fund flows rebounded the week ending April 9, as funds reported the largest amount of inflows since the start of 2014.

Leaders on the Senate Environment and Public Works committee said they reached an agreement on principles for a surface transportation reauthorization bill and suggested funding could be raised through tax reform.

Market participants believe Detroit's settlement with three bond insurers Wednesday is a breakthrough in the city's bankruptcy proceedings, even though it is not final and leaves many questions unanswered.

Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. launched a fund designed to avoid risk, protecting investors’ capital by focusing on high-grade intermediate maturities.