Today In The Markets

Fitch Ratings downgraded Guilford County, North Carolina’s issuer default rating and general obligation debt to AA-plus from AAA on Friday afternoon, reflecting a material increase in its debt load and “midrange” demographic and economic developments. Simultaneously, Fitch downgraded the county’s lease obligations to AA from AA-plus. The outlook is stable. The county had $673 million

Municipals were steady Monday as U.S. Treasuries were slightly weaker and equities ended mixed. The two-year muni-to-Treasury ratio Monday was at 62%, the three-year at 65%, the five-year at 66%, the 10-year at 71% and the 30-year at 87%, according to Refinitiv Municipal Market Data’s 3 p.m. EST read. ICE Data Services had the two-year

Individual investors pay more than institutional investors to access the recently issued market, a Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board research report found. That follows its 2023 report on a similar topic, which found from 2018 to 2022 that individual investors not investing through separately managed accounts had minimal participation in the primary market and were more

Groundbreakings on public infrastructure projects jumped in July and are expected to accelerate later this year if the Federal Reserve begins to trim interest rates. That’s the latest update from Dodge Construction Network, which tracks construction projects across the nation from planning through groundbreaking. Its latest report highlighted a 19% increase in July from June

Ohio’s Eastern Gateway Community College will dissolve and close after a series of missteps and scandals. Red flags include settling a lawsuit with the Department of Education over its handling of Pell Grants for students; a grand jury indictment of its former president and his chief of staff; and failing to file on the Municipal