Bonds

Doug Nelson, who has 30 years of experience in the financial services industry, has been hired by Hilltop Securities Inc. to work in the firm’s Encino office in Southern California. Nelson will work in the firm’s Fixed Income Capital Markets division as a municipal credit analyst. Doug Nelson joins Hilltop in the firm’s Encino, California,

Municipal bonds firmed by one to two basis points on Friday, only the second time this month that triple-A benchmarks moved in any direction, as lower-than-usual December supply has kept municipal rates historically low. Triple-A benchmarks have only moved three basis points in total since the beginning of the month. Investors will see a $9

There is an emotional and human aspect in all relationships and that holds true for the bond between individuals and brands. The COVID-19 pandemic has brought both the strengths and weaknesses in customer experience under the spotlight. This episode will focus on how connecting with customers and ensuring they have a positive experience with a

New York State’s looming budget gaps driven by coronavirus-related revenue losses have put it at risk for another credit downgrade. S&P Global Ratings revised the outlook on New York’s general obligation bonds to negative from stable Friday afternoon, citing near-term risks for declining tax revenues in the current 2021 fiscal year budget and in 2022.

Hawaii, which has already turned to the bond market to fund its operations as the coronavirus pandemic crushes its economy, will begin furloughing state employees. Gov. David Ige said state employees will be furloughed two days a month starting January 1 to close an anticipated $1.4 billion budget shortfall each year for the next four

Pinned into a corner from the economic effects of COVID-19, New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority on Thursday borrowed its remaining $2.9 billion available from the Federal Reserve’s short-term borrowing program. That program, the Municipal Liquidity Facility, will expire Dec. 31. Congress had enacted the $500 billion program as part of the CARES Act in March,

Wisconsin plans to establish new underwriting pools after reviewing responses to a request for qualifications process this month, with its eye on expanding existing pools as it heads into next year. The current investment banking pools expire Dec. 31. The state chooses from among 20 in the qualified senior pool and 25 in its co-manager

Municipal bonds were little changed while the primary took the front seat with deals being bumped in repricings, and JFK Airport bonds re-priced by 15 to 30 basis points lower than initial wires. Secondary trading was elevated, but selling pressure was not and triple-A benchmarks held steady Wednesday, even with another round of U.S. Treasury

New Hampshire heads to market next week with a $134.7 million general obligation bond deal as the state confronts fiscal challenges posed by coronavirus. The competitive deal scheduled for Dec. 15 features $47.1 million of Series C capital improvement bonds, $50 million of Series D refunding bonds and $37.7 million of Series E federally taxable

The fate of litigation seeking to void $14 billion of outstanding Illinois general obligation bonds could be settled in the coming months by the Illinois Supreme Court. The state high court recently accepted Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul’s petition for leave to file an appeal of the August appellate decision that remanded the caseto the

The hits to New York’s credit continued late Tuesday night as Fitch Ratings downgraded the city’s general obligation bonds and its issuer default rating to AA-minus from AA. Earlier in the day, S&P Global Ratings revised its outlook on city GOs to negative while affirming its AA long-term rating on the city’s debt. Fitch, which

Municipal yields fell one to two basis points Tuesday on triple-A benchmarks, the first time since the beginning of the month the market saw any movement in the secondary. The new-issue market saw strong reception and deals priced at yields some might not have imagined a year ago on certain less-than-perfect credits. Primary repricings showed

President Donald Trump appointed three people to three-year terms on the Puerto Rico Oversight Board Tuesday. The president named former Utah and Michigan budget director John Nixon and New York educator Betty Rosa. Rosa is Interim Commissioner of Education and President of University of State of New York. Her career has been as a teacher

Los Angeles’ city administrative officer has recommended layoffs to close an estimated $675 million budget deficit, including cutting nearly 1,000 police officer positions, a move that would bring the number of cops on the street to the lowest in two decades. If the City Council approves the move, it would be a major shift in

With vaccines on the horizon, signalling an end to the COVID-19 pandemic is closer, the economists at BNP project a healthy rebound in economic activity globally in the second half of next year, with rising inflation expectations, but rates remaining at the zero lower bound for at least the next two years. “The prospect of

Municipal bonds were steady Monday as strong technicals and the dearth of new-issue supply relative to redemptions continued to flatten the yield curve and keep muni/U.S. Treasury ratios low. Treasuries pared back Friday’s losses to see the 10-year hover around 0.93% Monday but the divergence of municipal rates from UST continues while investors await a

“We know there is more work to be done and we continue to urge Washington to take action and give Coloradans the support we need,” said Colorado Gov. Jared Polis. With Democrats firmly in control of the General Assembly and the governor’s office, Colorado lawmakers took only three days to approve more than $200 million

Nonfarm payrolls rose 245,000 in November after a downwardly revised 610,000 gain in October, first reported as a 638,000 increase. The unemployment rate fell to 6.7% from 6.9%, and the labor force participation rate slipped to 61.5% from 61.7%. Average hourly earnings rose 0.3% in November, more than the 0.1% expected by economists. The jobs

When New York Mayor Bill de Blasio released his November financial plan that projected a roughly $4 billion gap for fiscal 2022, more telling was what he didn’t say. Uncertainties loom as de Blasio’s budget team scrambles to craft the balanced FY22 spending plan he must reveal by late January. The updated budget is $92

“It’s less money, but over a shorter period of time,” Speaker Nancy Pelosi told reporters Friday at her weekly news conference. “And we need to do it, to save lives and livelihood, with the hope that much more help is on the way.” Bloomberg News Support is growing in Congress along with a sense of

The pandemic offers a unique window to solve long-standing problems investors face when comparing securities and tracking down their revenue sources. The problems, sources say, stem from the fact that there is no single source of data, public or private, that correctly links bond issues to the correct obligors based solely on the security pledge

California’s governor announced new stay-at-home orders that would be triggered in each region based on their hospitals’ capacity to absorb new COVID-19 patients. The order, which takes effect Saturday afternoon, comes into force if a region’s intensive care unit capacity falls below 15%. California Gov. Gavin Newsom outlined new stay-at-home orders that will be triggered

Municipals ended the week little changed ahead of an at least $9 billion new-issue calendar led by a Puerto Rico Aqueduct and Sewer Authority $1.4 billion refunding deal and a Massachusetts $1.2 billion of taxable general obligation revenue anticipation notes, among an eclectic mix of credits. Triple-A benchmarks held steady with some curves showing minor

Louisiana Treasurer John Schroder, who chairs the state bond commission, has been hospitalized with breathing difficulties after testing positive for the coronavirus that causes COVID-19. Schroder, 59, tested positive shortly before Thanksgiving and recently required treatment, Treasury spokeswoman Michelle Millhollon said late Thursday. The bond commission is slated to meet Dec. 17. The meeting will

Milwaukee suffered its second rating hit of the year as the city gets pushback from rating agencies for its use of fund balances to manage budget deficits. Moody’s Investors Service lowered the city’s general obligation rating by one notch to A2 from A1 and said the outlook remains negative. The action impacts $929 million of

Municipal yields held steady on AAA benchmarks Thursday amid choppy trading that veered toward sideways as inflows, rich muni/U.S. Treasury ratios and not enough new paper have become status quo in the market. Municipals are decoupled from U.S. Treasuries, which can clearly be seen in rich ratios (the 10-year muni as low as 70% of

“We haven’t received a response to the previous notice we sent asking you to file your annual information return or electronic notice,” the Internal Revenue Service said in a March 16 letter. Bloomberg News The Internal Revenue Service recently reversed an earlier ruling and reinstated the tax-exempt status of $26.1 million in charter school lease

Municipals held steady to a basis point weaker in spots Wednesday as New Jersey Transportation bonds priced 15 to 20 basis points lower than premarketing levels as demand heavily outweighed supply. Treasury losses were more muted but municipals did not follow for a second day with primary deals getting bumped in repricing. Meanwhile, ICI reported

The Federal Reserve is in no hurry to taper its massive bond buying program, Chair Jerome Powell said Wednesday, though he didn’t signal that the U.S. central bank was ready to ramp it up either. “Our priority remains supporting the economy until we are really well through this,” Powell told the House Financial Services Committee

Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., spoke Wednesday during a television interview at the Russell Senate Office Building in Washington about the $908 billion bipartisan emergency stimulus proposal that he and other congressional lawmakers release a day earlier.Bloomberg News State and local governments would receive $160 billion in new direct federal aid while education would receive $82