Taxable bonds

The region's municipal bond issuers borrowed $40.4 billion during the first half of the year as record low rates more than tripled refunding activity.

A surge in taxable muni volume has overall issuance 18% higher in the first half of 2020.

The housing and transportation sectors had the biggest declines in municipal bond volume.

The structure in which bonds are backed by a lease of city streets is being used in the Southern California cities of Torrance and West Covina.

Its $125 million taxable social bond follows a $1 billion Ford Foundation deal as part of a multi-foundation pledge in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Municipal issuers continue to swarm the muni market with taxable muni deals, as July accounted for $42.6 billion — the highest total for the month since at least 1986.

San Francisco International Airport will issue $291 million in refunding bonds amid belt-tightening efforts driven by a massive drop in passengers.

The authority realized $67 million in savings on its refunding.

UMB claims the bonds for the Kansas hotel project are in default because the developer failed to secure a $52 million loan required by the bond indenture.

The Bi-State Development Agency, which manages St. Louis public transit, took a two-notch downgrade from S&P Global Ratings over the pandemic's impacts.

Municipals finished little changed as a deluge of taxable deals get ready to hit the market.

Century Housing says it has financed 45,000 affordable housing units, but this marks its first venture into the municipal bond market with a muni CUSIP.

The $779 million refunding will capture present value savings while pushing off some debt repayments for budget relief that Fitch called "reasonable."

The trend should continue, unless coronavirus-related enrollment losses force an end.

Oregon's $320.4 million of taxable GO bonds were 7.7 times oversubscribed in some maturities.

Issuers bringing taxable deals this week should see robust buying interest as the strong performance of the corporate market has pushed yields down, making double-A taxable municipal bond yields attractive for corporate investors in the 21% tax bracket.

By trading electronically — the international standard — and providing regulatory reporting support as a result, the firm said it broadens the ability for foreign investors to buy munis.

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.

The corporate bond business appears to enjoy greater liquidity than tax-exempts, said Lee Deviney, executive director of the Texas Public Finance Authority.

Supply-starved investors flocked to the St. Louis-based private university's taxable deal, which was upsized to $450 million from $300 million.