Bonds

It took about two minutes into a House transportation subcommittee hearing Wednesday before the California high-speed rail project was singled out for criticism. Rep. Troy Nehls, R-Texas, chair of the Railroads, Pipelines and Hazardous Materials Subcommittee, opened the hearing on intercity rail by emphasizing the importance of balancing federal policies and spending with realistic consumer

After decades of underfunding, West Virginia dramatically closed its pension funding gap, according to a recent report from Pew Charitable Trust. The state, which had the poorest funding ratio in the entire nation in 2000, reduced its debt burden by 90% over the decades, marking one of the most impressive turnarounds amid a national trend

Municipal yields dropped up to another seven basis points led by strong secondary trading Tuesday while an $875 million competitive general obligation deal from Illinois took focus in the primary. U.S. Treasuries made gains and equities ended mixed. Municipal triple-A curves saw yields fall four to seven basis points, depending on the curve while USTs

New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority faces potential budget gaps that could widen to nearly $900 million in 2026, according to the Citizens Budget Commission. The nonprofit think tank that analyzes state and city finances warns in a report released Monday that the MTA’s promised cost-saving measures may fall short and revenue from yet-to-be-built casinos could

Municipals were firmer Monday as investors prepare for a larger, $7 billion new-issue calendar while U.S. Treasuries made gains and equities were mixed near the close. Triple-A yield curves were bumped one to four basis points, depending on the curve, while UST yields fell by six to eight basis points. Munis continued to rally last

U.S. District Court Judge Laura Taylor Swain said she would hear a bondholder suit in the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority case that Puerto Rico bondholders and Puerto Rico’s government argued should be assigned to a different judge. GoldenTree Asset Management and bond insurer Syncora Guarantee filed suit in the U.S. District Court for Puerto

A firm tone and hearty appetite from investors was evident Wednesday as the municipal market prepared for a shortened week due to the Thanksgiving holiday. U.S. Treasuries were mixed and equities were better. The two-year muni-to-Treasury ratio Wednesday was at 63%, the three-year at 64%, the five-year at 65%, the 10-year at 67% and the

A bankruptcy court recently ruled for the most part in favor of Chester, Pennsylvania, bondholders in an adversary proceeding filed by the city challenging liens on revenues for bonds issued in 2017 as part of a financial recovery plan for the city. Chester, which filed for bankruptcy in November 2022, has faced decades of financial

An Oklahoma law prohibiting state and local government contracts with companies that “boycott” the fossil fuel industry is the target of a lawsuit, claiming the measure prevents public employee pension funds from performing their constitutional duty to operate for the exclusive benefit of their beneficiaries. The case filed in Oklahoma County District Court this week

Former Sterlington, Louisiana, Mayor Vern Breland has, without admitting or denying the findings, agreed to pay a $35,000 civil penalty in addition to a permanent bar from future municipal securities offerings following his role in providing false projections to the Louisiana State Bond Commission in connection with two offerings worth $5.8 million, the Securities and

Wisconsin has released a request for qualifications from firms willing to serve as bond underwriters in either a senior manager or co-manager capacity. The state Capital Finance Office will set up pools of qualified investment banking firms, which it will use to designate underwriting syndicates effective through Dec. 31, 2026. Clarifications are due by noon

A delegation from Miami-Dade County, Florida, will visit Japan from Nov. 25 to Dec. 6 in a bid to deepen trade and commerce ties and establish business connections between the two regions. Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava and Oliver Gilbert III, Chairman of the Board of County Commissioners, will lead a delegation from the

Citi’s municipal division appears to have been spared from initial reorganization efforts at the firm, according to market sources. Citigroup informed its employees Monday of an upcoming round of job cuts and managerial changes — the next large step in CEO Jane Fraser’s push to create a simpler, flatter company. Citi did not say how many positions

Municipals were firmer Tuesday as U.S. Treasury yields fell slightly, following the release of the Federal Open Market Committee meeting minutes that said officials will remain cautious about future interest rate hikes. Equities ended down. Muni triple-A yield curves were bumped two to six basis points Tuesday, depending on the curve, as municipals continued to

The current municipal rally has led to an increase in tax loss harvesting as more investors leverage the strength and pre-holiday liquidity to consider repositioning their portfolios. This year has seen an increase in and an earlier start to tax loss harvesting after rapidly rising, and then subsequently falling, interest rates and stronger equity market

SK Battery America, a subsidiary of South Korean firm SK On, one of the world’s largest battery makers, is scaling back production on several fronts in response to a changing market for the vehicles. As an EV market turbocharged by federal incentives and high-set expectations cools off and major producers weigh cost-saving measures, SK said

Municipals were bumped up to a basis point or two Monday, while U.S. Treasuries were firmer out long and equities rallied near the close. For the third consecutive week, muni yields continued to fall. The 10-year note fell by 21.6 basis points last week to end the week at 3.05%, said Jason Wong, vice president

With the acceleration of technology in all markets, firms are trying to create solutions to process data — from issuer offering documents and continuing disclosures to trades and pricing and evaluations — and turn it into digestible, usable forms. For an illiquid, over-the-counter market with more than 50,000 issuers and a million securities outstanding, challenges

Municipals improved Friday to close out a week of more gains despite some U.S. Treasury volatility, positioning the asset class to see historically high returns for the month. Equities ended up near the end of the trading session. Triple-A yields fell up to four basis points, depending on the curve, outperforming a mixed UST market,

While pursuing his doctorate in economics at Columbia University, Oliver Giesecke came across several challenges as he was researching and collecting data on the muni market. Either it wasn’t available or it was incomplete or at times, misleading. In an effort to provide more and clearer data on certain attributes of the muni market, Giesecke,

Moody’s Investors Service affirmed its negative outlook on mass transit, highlighting Bay Area Rapid Transit as an example, even after the San Francisco rapid transit system announced it had received state funding. BART, a San Francisco Bay Area rapid transit system, announced on Wednesday that it would receive $352 million from the Metropolitan Transportation Commission