Bonds

Municipals were steady to start the week, while U.S. Treasuries sold off and equities ended mixed. The two-year muni-UST ratio was at 60%, the three-year at 61%, the five-year at 62%, the 10-year at 65% and the 30-year at 89%, according to Refinitiv MMD’s 3 p.m. ET read. ICE Data Services had the two-year at

Bancroft Capital has hired Dana Villanova as director of municipals, the firm announced on Monday. Villanova, who will be working remotely from Hawaii, will help expand Bancroft’s engagement with issuers, financial advisors and its underwriting partners, with a focus on the West Coast. She will also use her background in bond insurance and green bond verification to

The Irvine City Council is slated to vote Tuesday night on the issuance of $455 million in dirt bonds to further develop Orange County, California’s Great Park. Plagued by accusations of cronyism and improper management, the park located at the site of the former Marine Corps Air Station El Toro, hasn’t lived up to its

The municipal market is a safe haven with stronger fundamentals and higher quality than the corporate market, as well as buying opportunities, according to Jennifer Johnston, director of research in the municipal bond group at Franklin Templeton. “We have significantly lower default rates and the ratings of the muni indices are even stronger when compared

The Securities and Exchange Commission’s proposal to clamp down on conflicts of interest connected with the sale of asset- backed securities and certain other securitization transactions, as required by Dodd-Frank, should exempt municipal bonds as the proposal is unnecessarily broad and may negatively affect underwriters involved in certain transactions. The proposed rule as part of

To bolster its infrastructure and higher education divisions, Siebert Williams Shank & Co. has hired Marvin Markus and Mark Liff as managing directors, the firm announced Monday. Markus and Liff are municipal financial industry veterans with decades of experience between them. “With the addition of Marvin Markus and Mark Liff, our firm is adding two senior

The Texas Senate last week passed what one lawmaker called “off-the-charts, historical, record, unprecedented property tax relief.”  At $16.5 billion over the upcoming biennium, State Sen. Paul Bettencourt’s string of superlatives for the tax cut package appears to be justified.  Cheered on by Republican Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who heads the Senate, the measures sailed

Denver International Airport CEO Phillip Washington has withdrawn from consideration as President Biden’s pick to head the Federal Aviation Committee amid Republican opposition. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg confirmed Washington’s withdrawal in a tweet Saturday night. “The FAA needs a confirmed administrator, and Phil Washington’s transportation & military experience made him an excellent nominee,” Buttigieg said.

Lawmakers in Maine hoping to avoid a government shutdown at the turn of the fiscal year are working to cleave Gov. Janet Mills’ $10.3 billion biennial budget proposal in two. The state Senate’s Appropriations and Financial Affairs Committee announced on Thursday a plan to partition the governor’s proposal for fiscal years 2024 and 2025 into

Municipals finished out a nerve-wracking week on a strong note, with yields falling by as much as nine basis points on the short end while U.S. Treasuries strengthened and equities came under pressure. As holders of bank stocks headed for the exits and muni investors looked on nervously from the sidelines as the Federal Open

A Texas House committee ditched an appropriation to potentially pay off $3.52 billion of recently issued bonds from a natural gas securitization deal, but left open the possibility for the funding’s return. Thursday’s action by the House Appropriations Committee approving its version of a supplemental appropriations bill without the funding came the same day the

Moody’s Investors Service raised the outlook on Guam to positive from stable on Thursday. The outlook is on the Ba1 rating of the territory’s general obligation, special tax rating, and the Ba2 rating on its certificates of participation rating, all of which were affirmed. The improved outlook stems from Guam’s improved financial position resulting from

New York officials are looking with caution as the fallout from the Signature and Silicon Valley Bank failures casts a pall over budget negotiations. Both the city and the state are working on their fiscal 2024 budgets. The state’s fiscal year begins April 1 while the city’s starts on July 1. Amid rising inflation and

Wisconsin’s Republican legislative majority delivered its latest rebuke to Gov. Tony Evers’ biennial spending plan with their rejection of the Democrat’s $3.8 billion capital plan. The State Building Commission — which includes Evers, four Republican members, two Democrats, and a citizen voting member — rejected all of Evers’ line items at its meeting Thursday in

Republican senators Thursday urged Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg to restore regular funding for a handful of popular transportation grant programs that President Biden’s fiscal 2024 budget leaves on the chopping block. Buttigieg appeared before the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development and Related Agencies subcommittee Thursday to defend Biden’s $6.9 trillion 2024

Despite an influx of infrastructure spending, the nation’s airports are being squeezed by the costs of servicing existing debt and the need to modernize their operations. The challenges were laid out in detail during a Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization hearing held by the Aviation Subcommittee of the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee Thursday.  “There’s $30

Municipals were slightly firmer in spots, while U.S. Treasuries extended their rally once more and equities ended up. The two-year muni-UST ratio was at 65%, the three-year at 66%, the five-year at 68%, the 10-year at 69% and the 30-year at 93%, according to Refinitiv MMD’s 3 p.m. ET read. ICE Data Services had the

German automaker Volkswagen is set to receive $1.3 billion in state aid under an economic development deal signed by South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster on Monday, backing the construction of a new electric-vehicle production plant 20 miles north of the capital, Columbia. The $2 billion planned factory will produce electric vehicles under the Scout nameplate,

Flint, Michigan’s fiscal condition remains stable but fragile with some positive signs on the horizon as its citizens move closer to receiving compensation for the 2014 water contamination crisis, with a $600 million state-backed settlement clearing its final legal hurdle. Following federal court approval in 2021 and an appellate affirmation last week, Genesee County Circuit

The judge in the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority bankruptcy ruled bondholders had no lien on the authority’s revenues, which could result in bondholders recovering as little as 0.21% of their principal. The Puerto Rico Oversight Board has introduced a plan of adjustment where that would be the payout if the judge ruled the bondholders

A bill prohibiting state and local government contracts with large banks that “discriminate” against the firearm industry cleared the Republican-controlled Oklahoma House Wednesday as lawmakers try again to enact a ban. Ahead of the 74-19 vote, House Bill 2218 was amended to apply only to financial institutions with at least $50 billion in assets. For