Bonds

Market activity fees will be temporarily waived for dealers conducting transactions through the Federal Reserve’s short-term muni note purchase program. The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board filed Thursday to amend its Rule A-13, on underwriter and transaction assessments for dealers. The change, filed for immediate effectiveness, will temporarily waive fees associated with the Fed’s Municipal Liquidity

Buying time to gauge the financial hit to the commonwealth from the effects of COVID-19, Pennsylvania lawmakers sent Gov. Tom Wolf a five-month, $25.8 billion budget. The Senate’s 44-6 approval on Thursday followed 103-99 passage in the House of Representatives two days earlier. Gov. Tom Wolf, a Democrat who works with a Republican-controlled legislature, is

The COVID-19 pandemic will not delay the phaseout of Libor at the end of 2021, participants in a seminar sponsored by the Government Finance Officers Association were told Thursday. The Financial Stability Board issued a statement April 2 affirming that it is sticking with the phaseout plans, which means local and state finance officers need

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell defended aggressive action to shield the economy as the coronavirus pandemic took hold and said the central bank was “days” away from launching its Main Street Lending Program. “We crossed a lot of red lines that had not been crossed before,” Powell said Friday during an online event hosted by

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy’s emergency bonding plan to patch revenue gaps caused by the COVID-19 pandemic faces an uncertain future in the state legislature. Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin, D-Fords, is supporting Murphy’s bond proposal and scheduled a June 4 hearing about the measure, which would use the Federal Reserve’s Municipal Lending Facility for $5

The California Public Utilities Commission approved PG&E’s bankruptcy reorganization plan Thursday, clearing one hurdle to its exit from Chapter 11. The investor-owned utility entered bankruptcy in January 2019 weighed down by more than $30 billion in liabilities for a series of wildfires in California that killed more than 100 people and scorched thousands of acres.

The municipal bond market saw $27.99 billion of volume in May as overall issuance has slowly but surely started increasing as the industry recovers from the coronavirus fallout that began in March. The 4.2% drop-off in volume compared to the same month in 2019 resulted in the lowest May volume since 2014 when the market

Spending by U.S. consumers fell a record 13.6% in April as the COVID-19 pandemic slashed demand for goods and services. The Labor Department reported on Friday that personal consumption expenditures fell $1.89 trillion last month while personal outlays dropped $1.91 trillion. Real personal consumption expenditures decreased 13.2%. The PCE price index fell 0.5%; excluding food

The municipal market concluded the final trading session of May on steady footing, with secondary yields remaining flat Friday amid a pickup in issuance. Meanwhile, New York City will begin to reopen starting June 8, the mayor and governor said Friday. Generic municipal yields have held at steady levels, though some sources said that is

Joseph Pollock has joined Cain Brothers as a managing director in its San Francisco office. Cain Brothers, a healthcare investment bank, is a division of KeyBanc Capital Markets Inc., the corporate and investment banking arm of Cleveland-based KeyCorp. Joseph Pollock joins Cain Brothers as a managing director in San Francisco.Cain Brothers Pollock will be responsible

The municipal bond market was steady Thursday amid the pricing of several new issues, including a low-rated Guam Waterworks $134 million deal. Despite the market’s recent firmness, however, a real sense of caution is coming into play. Some sources say the municipal market needs to begin pricing in downside risk from the coronavirus-led revenue losses

COVID-19-driven economic turmoil could cost Illinois $76 billion in economic output, a report from a University of Illinois task force said. “The economic disruption associated with the COVID-19 pandemic came on suddenly and is quite severe,” reads the report from the Economic and Fiscal Health Impact Group that’s part of the Task Force on the

Puerto Rico Oversight Board members and investors raised concerns Wednesday about the pace the local government on the island was taking to reform itself and its economy. Meanwhile, Ambac Financial Group, on behalf of its subsidiary Ambac Assurance Corp., filed an adversary complaint Tuesday against the board in U.S. District Court for Puerto Rico arguing

Not-for-profit hospitals suffered a record-setting blow to margins as their balances sheets bore the full brunt of the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact, according to a report. Hospital operating margins before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization tumbled by 174% over the same period last year and fell 118% from March, hit by the steep drop in elective

Economic activity dropped sharply in most districts of the country, with a “highly uncertain” outlook and pessimism about recovery, according to the Federal Reserve’s Beige Book, released on Wednesday. Although as reopening of the economy begins there is hope for improvement, the report showed widespread pain. With nonessential businesses still mostly shut when the survey

The Puerto Rico Oversight Board’s proposed plan to guide the island’s financial recovery has 65% less money available for paying debt service through fiscal 2032. Board Executive Director Natalie Jaresko said she expects the island’s central government to have $8 billion in surplus money through fiscal 2032, rather than the $23 billion the May 2019

While the Colorado General Assembly determines how to cut $3.4 billion from its budget in the current and coming fiscal years, the state will price $500 million of certificates of participation for rural highways this week. The COPs, rated Aa2 by Moody’s Investors Service and AA-minus by S&P Global Ratings, are scheduled to price Wednesday

Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis President James Bullard predicted the U.S. economy will recover from the highest unemployment since the 1930s with a rapid rebound that will push the jobless rate below 10% by December. Bullard, in a television interview Tuesday with Fox Business Network, said the business shutdowns imposed due to COVID-19 can’t

Federal Reserve officials, most notably Chair Jerome Powell, say they still have ammunition to spark the economy. While the Fed hasn’t really defined what tools they will use, one thing is certain — negative rates are a last resort. So what can the Fed do? More of what they’ve been doing, according to Steven Oh,

An appellate court has found a South Carolina tax policy impermissibly discriminated against CSX because it values the railroad company’s land at a higher rate than other commercial property. The ruling marks the latest decision in a six-year legal battle between the state and the Florida-based freight railroad company, and the second ruling in the

Seton Hall University plans to sell $103 million of bonds as it grapples with near-term fiscal challenges that triggered a rating downgrade. Moody’s Investors Service lowered the South Orange, New Jersey-based school to Baa1 from A3 Wednesday, citing the school’s constrained financial flexibility because of a rising debt burden. The outlook is stable. The Catholic

The National League of Cities reports that 32 states are withholding federal funding to local governments that was approved under the CARES Act that was signed into law March 27. The survey completed May 18 found most municipal governments have received “no indication when, or if, funds will ever be made available,” the NLC said.

The municipal market saw yields fall by five to six basis points across the curve and strong secondary high-grade trades showed it. Municipals are poised to gain well over 2.5% for the month and return to positive territory for the year after being pummeled at the start of the coronavirus-led sell-off in March. According to

Toll road revenues decreased by up to 90% due to coronavirus-led government shutdowns that began in early March and agencies are looking to the federal government for short- and long-term aid. Toll road agency officials also want modifications to the Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act, seeking the potential for a borrower to get a

Municipal bonds continued their descent to lower yields Thursday, declining at least five basis points across the curve while the short end continued its rally. The one- to three-year yields are reaching near-record lows, calling into question how far they can drop before investors start backing off. A decent crossover trade from taxable bond sectors

Illinois’ fiscal 2021 budget may rely on borrowing billions through the Federal Reserve’s short-term borrowing program if separate direct funding help from the federal government that Gov. J.B. Pritzker and other governors across the country are seeking to help make up for COVID-19 tax losses fails to quickly come to fruition. The fiscal 2021 budget

The municipal market continued its short-end rally Tuesday with yields falling by as much as seven basis points, amid a well-functioning new-issue market that saw deals re-priced to lower yields. Amid an otherwise quiet tone that was characterized by some firmness and strong demand for a large Connecticut pricing and a steepening yield curve, there

Municipals finished strong Monday as short-term yields again fell to record low levels while long-term bonds steadied. Yields on the short end are now lower than before the March sell-off. The 10-year is creeping lower to fall below 1% while the short end is lower than 0.40%. Benchmarks fell by as much as seven basis

The Federal Reserve issued a stark warning Friday that stock and other asset prices could suffer significant declines should the coronavirus pandemic deepen, with the commercial real estate market being among the hardest-hit industries. The Fed made the assertion in its twice-yearly financial stability report, in which it flags risks to the U.S. banking system

The municipal market closed the week with lower yields again on triple-A benchmarks while the search for high-grade bonds spurred a more active secondary than a typical Friday. Short-term yields continued to drop to record low levels and long-term bonds also rallied. Triple-A benchmark yields were about four basis points lower. In the secondary market,