Bonds

The nearly $1 trillion of federal pandemic aid that flowed to state and local governments over the last two years helped stave off massive job losses but public sector job recovery has been slow and remains anemic compared to other sectors. That’s according to a paper on the effectiveness of federal pandemic relief presented Monday

Rising inflation and falling stock prices are getting ready to take a big bite out of the Big Apple’s economic recovery. According to a report released this week by New York City Comptroller Brad Lander, June’s personal income tax data are showing the effects the sagging stock market and volatile bond market are having on

West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin has dealt President Biden and the Democrats’ Build Back Better bill a final blow, refusing to accept key tax and climate provisions and destroying any hope for reviving the muni market agenda before elections in November. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., had been negotiating with fellow Democrat Manchin for

The stock market decline of 2022 is projected to push the unfunded liabilities of state-run pension systems to $1.3 trillion for the fiscal year, according to a Reason Foundation analysis. The steps taken by states to bolster pension funds by lowering anticipated return rates during boom years combined with record-setting investment returns in 2021 isn’t

Municipals were little changed to close out the week, while U.S. Treasury yields fell slightly and equities rallied. Muni to UST ratios were at 65% in five years, 83% in 10 years and 96% in 30 years, according to Refinitiv MMD’s 3 p.m. read. ICE Data Services had the five at 64%, the 10 at

Next week’s planned sale of $2.7 billion of taxable business-tax backed special obligation revenue bonds by Massachusetts is being postponed as state lawmakers negotiate a bill that could affect the plan. A bill was introduced earlier this week, according to a notice from Jefferies LLC and BofA Securities, joint book-running senior managers for the deal,

U.S. Representative Raúl Grijalva, D-Ariz., submitted a bill Friday for a binding plebiscite on Puerto Rico’s political status, but its chances of passage are slim. The bill would offer Puerto Rico voters three options: statehood, independence, and sovereignty in free association with the United States. The current status as a territory would not be offered.

Municipals took a breather and were little changed Thursday, while U.S. Treasuries were mixed as the 2/10 UST curve flattened but remained inverted, sending worrisome recession signs. Equities ended in the red. Muni to UST ratios were at 65% in five years, 82% in 10 years and 96% in 30 years, according to Refinitiv MMD’s

The Federal Reserve’s Inspector General said Chair Jerome Powell and former Vice Chair Richard Clarida’s trading activity had not broken any laws or rules, but the probe into the former heads of the Dallas and Boston regional Fed banks remained open. “We did not find evidence to substantiate the allegations that former Vice Chair Clarida

Municipals were little changed in secondary trading, as eyes turned toward the primary market’s large revenue deals from the New York State Thruway Authority and the Colorado Health Facilities Authority. The 2/10 U.S. Treasury curve significantly inverted after the June consumer price index report came in hotter than expected at 9.1%, further stoking recession fears

Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta President Raphael Bostic said “everything is in play” for policy action after data showed that U.S. inflation accelerated again to a fresh four-decade high last month. “The top-line number is a source of concern,” Bostic told reporters Wednesday in St. Petersburg, Florida. “Everything is in play.” Asked if that included

Several Midwest states closed the books on fiscal 2022 this month with robust, even record-breaking revenue windfalls that swelled throughout the year. Illinois, Minnesota, and Ohio were among the states that ended the fiscal year on June 30 with flush coffers that exceeded projections — which in some cases had been lifted several times over

A higher inflation, higher interest rate environment will exacerbate pension-related risks to investors in U.S. state and local government bonds, moving those risks back center stage for the municipal market as the direct impacts of the COVID pandemic ease. From a bondholder’s perspective, pension risk refers to the possibility that pension costs can grow to

Municipals were firmer in secondary trading and moved in lockstep with U.S. Treasuries while an active primary led by a large income tax revenue bond offering from the District of Columbia took focus. Equities ended in the red. Triple-A curves saw yields fall three to five basis points while UST moved three to six basis

Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond President Thomas Barkin kept his options open on how big the central bank should go when it raises interest rates later this month, following an increase of 75 basis points in June. “I am one of the guys who like the option value of deciding the week of the meeting

The Oklahoma Turnpike Authority has assembled a financing team and is seeking approval from a state oversight council later this month for bonds to begin funding an expansion project that is the target of two lawsuits. OTA has asked the Oklahoma Council of Bond Oversight to consider up to $450 million of bonds for new

Massachusetts plans to bring $2.7 billion of taxable business-tax backed special obligation revenue bonds with a social designation, marking the largest environmental, social and governance deal to date in the municipal market. The deal is also one of the larger taxable deals in 2022 in a year that has seen a significant drop in taxable

Los Angeles International Airport received a $50 million grant from the federal infrastructure bill for terminal road improvements, among the largest dispersed from the $1 billion allocated to 85 airports nationally. The grants are the first allotment in a five-year, $5 billion airport terminal grant program funded by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, Transportation

The Supreme Court decision in Carson v. Makin may render unconstitutional issuer statutes that prohibit the use of bond proceeds for religious purposes. The court ruled last month that if a state chooses to subsidize private education, it cannot disqualify some private schools solely because of religious affiliation. The ruling could change the way some

Municipals were mixed to close out a quiet summer Friday session ahead of a larger new-issue calendar that sees several billion-dollar deals. Triple-A benchmark yields once again largely ignored a selloff in U.S. Treasuries after a robust jobs report indicated the Federal Reserve will likely hike interest rates another 75 basis points at its next