Bonds

Pension fund experts are worried about a rise in valuation risk, with recent reports showing many underfunded pension funds stabilizing even as asset allocation into riskier choices is getting a closer look.  Valuation risk is defined as calculating what an asset is worth based on “fair-priced” or “fair-value,” estimates  as opposed to public market prices based on actual

Theodore R. Vogel, a 30-year veteran of the municipal bond market and seasoned portfolio manager, died on Sept. 3 at his home in Millington, N.J. Vogel, 64, specialized in and was recognized for fixed income solutions, especially taxable and tax-exempt portfolio strategies and execution. He also had expertise in overall financial markets, investments, risk mitigation,

The Puerto Rico Oversight Board asked the First Circuit Court of Appeals to dismiss an effort by a Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority bondholder and bond insurer to let them appoint a receiver for the authority. The board told the court the issue was still before the District Court, which hasn’t fully ruled on the

Bond bulls may have just had a fresh speed bump placed in front of them by Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco President Mary Daly. Daly said the neutral interest rate — also known as R-star — may be higher now than it was before the pandemic, adding to the groundswell of concern the central

Connecticut will bring more than $1.1 billion of bonds to market for various transportation initiatives in a pricing next week. One of the oldest and most densely populated states, Connecticut has taken steps to shore up aging infrastructure, Peter Scherer, director in KBRA’s Public Finance Group, told The Bond Buyer. KBRA upgraded the long-term rating

Federal Reserve Governor Michelle Bowman said interest rates may need to rise further and stay higher for longer than previously expected to get inflation down to the central bank’s goal. Despite recent improvements, “inflation remains well above the FOMC’s 2% target. Domestic spending has continued at a strong pace, and the labor market remains tight,”

The North Carolina Local Government Commission has approved almost $2 billion in bond and local financing requests from municipalities across the state. The LGC, chaired by State Treasurer Dale Folwell, must sign off on the issuance of any state and local government debt. The North Carolina Housing Finance Agency received approval Oct 3 to issue

Signed into law in March of 2021, the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) allocates $1.9 trillion of economic stimulus to aid in the recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. Of that, $350 billion is allocated for states, counties, municipalities, tribes and territories. But not all government entities have applied for ARPA funds, particularly with the intent

Municipals were firmer Tuesday, underperforming a U.S. Treasury flight-to-safety rally. Equities ended in the black. Triple-A muni yields fell up to 10 basis points while USTs rallied upwards of 15 basis points. The two-year muni-to-Treasury ratio Tuesday was at 73%, the three-year was at 73%, the five-year at 74%, the 10-year at 75% and the

Transportation and issuer groups have expressed support for a Republican Senate bill that would require electric vehicle owners to pay a fee to help support the struggling Highway Trust Fund. Senate Bill 2882, the Stop EV Freeloading Act, would impose a $1,000 fee at the manufacturer level and a one-time fee of $550 on each

Preliminary Puerto Rico net general fund revenues for the first quarter of fiscal 2024 were 19.7% above Oversight Board projections. Net general fund revenues for July, came in 17.4% above board projections and 16.2% over the collections for July 2022. July net income was $811 million, $121 million more than the board projected.  Puerto Rico

California and Illinois are the largest contributors to an expected $1.3 trillion in unfunded pension liabilities for the 50 states in fiscal 2023, according to a Reason Foundation study. California’s public pension systems are projected to be $245 billion short of where they need to be after 2023, the largest miss in the nation, followed

UBS’s Public Finance Group will be exiting the negotiated underwriting business, according to an internal company memo. The firm will “pursue alternative solutions to access the new-issue market” and reposition its resources “to focus on where [it] sees increasing client and advisor demand,” the memo noted. The transition to solely focus on competitive underwriting is

Of the $227.938 billion of par issued, municipal financial advisors saw $227.626 billion of business in 4,134 transactions in Q1-Q3 in 2023. This is down from the $249.137 billion in 4,820 deals over the same time period in 2022, out of a total of $249.168 billion. RBC Capital Markets and Caine Mitter & Associates moved

The top municipal underwriters accounted for $265.047 billion in 5,383 issues in the first three quarters of 2023, down from $291.908 billion in 6,417 transactions over the same time period in 2022. BofA Securities remained in the top spot despite accounting for less par and a smaller market share than in 2022. Minor shuffling among

Municipals were weaker along with U.S. Treasuries Friday following better-than-expected jobs data while equities rallied on the data. The September non-farm payrolls report dashed any suggestions that the labor market is weakening, but analysts still debate whether the Federal Reserve will need to raise rates again. In addition to 336,000 jobs being created in the

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper is leading a state delegation to Japan next week to attend the Southeastern United States/Japan (SEUS/Japan) economic development conference in Tokyo. The trip, from Oct. 11 to 15, aims to entice businesses to move to the state. The delegation will also meet with officials and business leaders. “Japan is a

Enjoy complimentary access to top ideas and insights — selected by our editors. Peter Hayes, one of the most well-known and influential people in the municipal bond industry, plans to relax and enjoy life with his family and friends after he retires early next year. “I’ll be 65 next year — and I didn’t think

The largest health-care strike in U.S. history hit Kaiser Permanente Wednesday, putting investors who buy and sell hospital bonds on edge as an industry that’s already experienced more than its share of distress struggles to stabilize financially. Kaiser has almost $4 billion in outstanding municipal-bond debt, according to Bloomberg data, including $1 billion in so-called

The muni market may be several years away from fully integrating artificial intelligence, but firms are taking small steps already. “AI is a big deal if you want to personalize your approach, differentiate your products,” James Pruskowski, chief investment officer of 16Rock Asset Management, said during MuniTech NYC, a conference hosted by Munichain and Spline

A year after it was launched, the U.S. Conference of Mayor’s public-private partnership task force held its inaugural roundtable conference this week in Atlanta. “Our first public-private partnerships council meeting laid the groundwork for our objectives in the years to come,” said Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens, who was tapped last year to head up the council.