The Bond Buyer articles from March 2009

The Bond Buyer archives from March 2009

Alaska Sets $165 Million of GOs For April, and POBs Could Follow.(The Regions)
March 2, 2009... Byline: Rich Saskal SAN FRANCISCO - Alaska plans to go to market next month with the first piece of a recently approved general obligation authorization, and a sizable pension obligation bond issue may follow if the market cooperates. ...

Northeast Bond-Watch.(Northeast)
March 2, 2009... Byline: Michelle Kaske, Ted Phillips NEW JERSEY ARC Tunnel Gets Fed Funds Transportation projects in New Jersey will benefit from $3.21 billion of funds from the federal stimulus package, with a new passenger rail tunnel...

California Closes First GO Private Placement With Another Public Entity.(The Regions)
March 2, 2009... Byline: Rich Saskal SAN FRANCISCO - California Treasurer Bill Lockyer Friday announced the closing of the state's first private placement of general obligation bonds with another public entity. More private placements are in the works,...

Corzine: Budget Cuts Now Could Mean Less Debt Later.(The Regions)
March 2, 2009... Byline: Michelle Kaske New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine said the cuts necessary to balance the budget during the economic downturn will put the state in a good position to begin reducing its overall debt load when the economy starts growing...

DEAL IN FOCUS: Maryland Selling $410M of Triple-A GOs in Its First-Ever Negotiated Deal.(Northeast)
March 2, 2009... Byline: Lynne Funk WASHINGTON - Maryland kicked off its first-ever negotiated deal with a three-day retail order period that began Friday for $410 million of general obligation bonds. The triple-A rated state also plans to take bids for...

Florida Bills Would Require Voters' OK for Water District COPs.(The Regions)
March 2, 2009... Byline: Shelly Sigo BRADENTON, Fla. - Two Florida lawmakers have filed bills that would require water management districts to get voter approval through referendums before selling certificates of participation. The bills will be...

Softness Persists as California Completes Private Placement.(Market News)
March 2, 2009... Byline: Michael Scarchilli Weakness in the municipal market persisted Friday for the eighth consecutive session, while California's Bay Area Toll Authority completed a $194 million private placement of general obligation bonds. ...

IN BRIEF: Preliminary 4Q GDP Shows a 6.2% Decline.(Market News)
March 2, 2009... Byline: Market News International WASHINGTON - The fourth-quarter 2008 real gross domestic product revision was to a 6.2% decline - pretty much as expected, but a far reach from the 3.8% drop printed in the prior estimate and a much...

IN BRIEF: Feb. Chicago PMI at 34.2, Up From 33.3 in January.(Market News)
March 2, 2009... Byline: Gary E. Siegel The Chicago Purchasing Managers' Business Barometer rose to 34.2 in February from 33.3 in January, the National Association of Purchasing Management-Chicago said Friday. Economists polled by Thomson Reuters...

IN BRIEF: Feb. NAPM-NY Index Declines to 29.6 From 38.4.(Market News)
March 2, 2009... Byline: Gary E. Siegel New York City business activity was down in February, according to the National Association of Purchasing Management-New York's Report on Business. The current business conditions index slumped to 29.6 in...

IN BRIEF: Feb. Consumer Sentiment Falls to 56.3 From 61.2.(Market News)
March 2, 2009... Byline: Gary E. Siegel The University of Michigan's final February consumer sentiment index reading was 56.3, compared to the preliminary February 56.2, and January's 61.2, according to market sources. Economists polled by Thomson...

Build America School Deals Could Drive Up Costs for New York State.(The Regions)
March 2, 2009... Byline: Ted Phillips The use of taxable bonds provided for under the federal stimulus package could drive up costs for New York if school districts decide to issue them, due to the state's reimbursement formula. While the American...

South Carolina Localities Likely Won't Face $122M of Cuts.(The Regions)
March 2, 2009... Byline: Patrick Temple-West WASHINGTON - Lawmakers are not likely to approve $122 million in cuts to South Carolina's local governments after the municipalities campaigned against the measure last week, a state representative said Friday....

STIMULUS: Programs Spark Call for Treasury Input.(Washington)
March 2, 2009... Byline: Peter Schroeder WASHINGTON - State and local governments need prompt guidance from the Treasury Department before they can issue the new taxable Build America or Recovery Zone bonds for cash subsidies or investor tax credits,...

BUDGET: Obama's Transportation Proposal Under Fire.(Washington)
March 2, 2009... Byline: Audrey Dutton WASHINGTON - President Obama's fiscal 2010 budget request proposes what some see as an enormous and potentially damaging shift in the way state and local transportation projects are funded, and the idea is already...

Triple-A Utah Goes Negotiated Route With $430 Million GO Sale.(The Regions)
March 2, 2009... Byline: Richard Williamson DALLAS - After calling off a $430 million competitive sale of general obligation bonds amid market turmoil last October, triple-A rated Utah is taking the negotiated route, starting with a retail order period...

New Issuance Dips 4.9% in February; But Volume Up 5% in First Two Months.(News)
March 2, 2009... Byline: Jack Herman New-issue volume fell 4.9% in February from a year earlier, but remains up 5% for the first two months of the year as the municipal market continues to see conditions more favorable than the ones that squeezed it...

THE WEEK AHEAD: Volume Expands as Cal State and Maryland Lead the Way.(Investors & Investing)(Calendar)
March 2, 2009... Byline: Christine Albano The municipal market is poised to welcome an estimated $5.16 billion in total new volume his week - the highest level in recent months - anchored by a $450 million revenue issue from the California State University...

MUTUAL FUNDS: Inflows Keep Up for 8th Straight Week.(Investors & Investing)
March 2, 2009... Byline: Dan Seymour Cash influxes into municipal bond mutual funds slowed a bit again last week as muni prices continued to cool off. Investors entrusted $470 million to muni funds that report weekly numbers during the week ended Feb....

FROM THE PUBLISHER: Keeping Score With More Financial Tools Than Ever Before.(Commentary)
March 2, 2009... Byline: Michael Stanton For more than a year, municipal market participants have looked to Washington for policy changes to help restore state and local governments' access to affordable capital. With the passage of the stimulus package...

BOND INSURERS: Buffett Stays Cautious; BHAC Limits Business, Rakes in Premiums.(Underwriters & Dealers)
March 3, 2009... Byline: Jack Herman Since Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Assurance Co. entered the bond insurance market, it has limited its production of new business and asked for high premiums. Last year, it wrapped just 22 issues with a par...

Southwest Bond-Watch.(Southwest)
March 3, 2009... Byline: Jim Watts ARKANSAS Library Bonds on the Table The Little Rock board of directors this week will consider a proposal by the Central Arkansas Library System to issue $28 million of 15-year library construction and...

Minus N.J. Debt, Catholic Health Sets Multi-State Conversion to Fixed Rate.(The Regions)
March 3, 2009... Byline: Michelle Kaske Catholic Health East Wednesday will convert $171.8 million of variable-rate bonds based on the London Interbank Offered Rate into fixed-rate mode in a multi-state transaction, but $74 million of similar bonds issued...

Colorado's Ritter Signs Bill to Speed Road Projects.(The Regions)
March 3, 2009... Byline: Richard Williamson DALLAS - In a ceremony overlooking one of metropolitan Denver's busiest freeways, Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter yesterday signed SB 108 creating a $250 million revenue stream for bonds to accelerate road...

Income Tax Bonds Earn D.C. Its First AAA.(The Regions)
March 3, 2009... Byline: Lynne Funk WASHINGTON - The $445 million of income tax bonds the District of Columbia plans to issue as soon as next week have received a AAA rating from Standard & Poor's - the first triple-A rating the district has ever obtained...

LEGISLATION: Bill Would Allow Muni Issuers to Sell $11B of Tax-Credit Broadband Bonds.(Washington)
March 3, 2009... Byline: Audrey Dutton A bill pending in two House committees would allow state and local governments and other municipal bond issuers to sell up to $11 billion of tax-credit bonds over a three-year period to finance new broadband...

Kansas Still Faces Budget Battle as Gov. Sebelius Goes to Washington.(The Regions)
March 3, 2009... Byline: Jim Watts DALLAS - The struggle to balance the Kansas state budget for fiscal 2009 will continue despite the departure of Gov. Kathleen Sebelius to become President Obama's health secretary. Sebelius was introduced by President...

Yields Rise with Calendar Heaviest in Months.(Market News)(Calendar)
March 3, 2009... Byline: Michael Scarchilli Though secondary market trading was light and Treasuries showed pronounced gains, tax-exempts yesterday extended their streak of rising yields to nine consecutive sessions, as the heftiest new-issue calendar in...

Latest Numbers Leave Nebraska Struggling to Craft a 2-Year Budget.(The Regions)
March 3, 2009... Byline: Caitlin Devitt CHICAGO - With its latest revenue estimates in hand, Nebraska lawmakers find themselves grappling with a slew of fiscal and economic pressures and uncertainties as they craft a new two-year budget. "In terms of...

IN BRIEF: Personal Income Up 0.4%; Core PCE Increases 0.1%.(Market News)
March 3, 2009... Byline: Market News International The U.S. January personal income report showed a surprising uptick in income related to the federal cost of living adjustment that was spent on nondurables, thereby boosting real consumption and altering...

IN BRIEF: Construction Spending Falls 3.3% to $986 Billion.(Market News)
March 3, 2009... Byline: Gary E. Siegel Spending on construction projects fell 3.3% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $986.2 billion in January as private construction decreased 3.7%, and public construction slid 2.3%, according to the Commerce...

IN BRIEF: February ISM Index at 35.8, Up From 35.6 in January.(Market News)
March 3, 2009... Byline: Gary E. Siegel The overall economy failed to grow for the fifth straight month after 83 months of expansion, while the manufacturing sector was contracted for the 13th month in a row, the Institute for Supply Management reported...

IN BRIEF: Internet Job Ads Lowest Since Since Indicator Began.(Market News)
March 3, 2009... Byline: Gary E. Siegel About 3,348,000 online job postings appeared on leading Internet job boards in February, a 6,600 decrease from January's 3,854,600, the Conference Board reported yesterday. "The good news is that labor demand was...

N.Y. Javits Center Project Finally On Track, Using '05 Bond Proceeds.(The Regions)
March 3, 2009... Byline: Ted Phillips New York's Jacob K. Javits Convention Center will finally get a long-awaited makeover using proceeds from a bond sale in 2005, when the expansion and renovation was expected to be much larger. The New York...

PEOPLE: Stern Gains New Status as Woman-Owned Firm.(Underwriters & Dealers)
March 3, 2009... Byline: Yvette Shields CHICAGO - In a move that puts St. Louis-based Stern Brothers & Co. among the limited ranks of broker-dealers owned by women, Pepe Prince Finn last month purchased a majority stake from her husband and the firm's...

TRENDS IN THE REGION: Region Rolls Up Sleeves With $30B Stimulus in Its Pockets.(Southwest)
March 3, 2009... Byline: Richard Williamson and Jim Watts DALLAS - The eight states of the Southwest region have already put their $30 billion share of the federal stimulus in motion, launching transportation projects, patching holes in their budgets, and...

Vermont Communities Seek Broadband COP Deal.(The Regions)
March 3, 2009... Byline: Michelle Kaske A plan to bring broadband service to 22 communities in Vermont is in need of credit enhancement to help the program move forward with a $100 million certificate of participation deal, according to its proponents. ...

MASTER SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT: Tobacco Firms Free $540M; Temporary Deal Ahead of Arbitration.(Investors & Investing)
March 3, 2009... Byline: Dan Seymour Tobacco companies contending billions of dollars in legal settlement payments released $540 million to states last week to advance resolution of the dispute. A group of tobacco companies is disputing $4.34 billion...

MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS: Bank of America, Merrill Lynch Brace for Still More Layoffs.(Underwriters & Dealers)
March 3, 2009... Byline: Yvette Shields CHICAGO - The municipal groups at Bank of America Corp. and Merrill Lynch & Co. are bracing for a new round of layoffs in the coming weeks as the bank seeks to steeply trim its ranks as it merges the public finance...

U.S. Court Dismisses Texas Agency's IRS Suit.(News)
March 4, 2009... Byline: Peter Schroeder WASHINGTON - A federal claims court ruled it did not have jurisdiction over a Texas nonprofit housing corporation's claim that the Internal Revenue Service abused its authority when it demanded $267,440 of arbitrage...

Beyond the ARS Collapse; Lawyers Eye Taxable Build America Bonds.(Market News)
March 4, 2009... Byline: Andrew Ackerman, Jack Herman, and Patrick Temple-West WASHINGTON - More than a year after the auction-rate securities market collapsed, some $78 billion of illiquid municipal ARS remain outstanding, but a growing number of bond...

NEW HIRES: Baum Taps Laird to Launch National Health Care Business.(Underwriters & Dealers)
March 4, 2009... Byline: Caitlin Devitt CHICAGO - Denver-based investment banking firm George K. Baum & Co. has hired prominent Midwest health care banker Tom Laird to open a Minneapolis office and launch a new national health care business. Hired as a...

Midwest Bond-Watch.(Midwest)
March 4, 2009... Byline: Yvette Shields, Caitlin Devitt ILLINOIS PFCs Cleared for Takeoff Chicago received clearance from the Federal Aviation Administration last week to use $182 million in passenger facility charges collected on airline tickets...

S&P: Cal State Goes to Stable From Positive Ahead of $450 Million Sale.(The Regions)
March 4, 2009... Byline: Rich Saskal SAN FRANCISCO - Standard & Poor's this week revised the outlook on its A-plus rating for California State University to stable from positive. The move comes as the university system prepares to price $450 million...

Fitch Lowers Corpus Christi Ahead of $96M Deal.(News)
March 4, 2009... Byline: Richard Williamson DALLAS - Fitch Ratings has downgraded the water and sewer debt of Corpus Christi, Tex., from AA-minus to A-plus based on declining debt service coverage on rising debt loads. The downgrade comes as the...

Connecticut Governor OKs Bill to Close $1.2B Deficit.(News)
March 4, 2009... Byline: Ted Phillips Connecticut Gov. M. Jodi Rell signed a bill yesterday to close the current $1.2 billion deficit in the current fiscal year. More than half of the gap-closing measure relies on federal stimulus funds and rainy-day...

RATING AGENCIES: Fitch Still Suspending Review of Municipal Ratings Framework.(Underwriters & Dealers)
March 4, 2009... Byline: Jack Herman Due to the economic and financial conditions issuers are facing, Fitch Ratings will continue to suspend its review of its U.S. municipal ratings framework, the agency said Monday. Fitch last July released an...

Iowa Health System Selling $250M Of LOC-Backed VR Debt Today.(The Regions)
March 4, 2009... Byline: Yvette Shields CHICAGO - Des Moines-based Iowa Health System enters the market today with nearly $250 million of variable-rate debt in five series with three letter of credit providers to raise $43 million for new projects and to...

MBIA's New Insurer Gets Some Bites; Longer Waiting Period Still Likely.(News)
March 4, 2009... Byline: Jack Herman In the two weeks since announcing its restructuring, MBIA Inc. said its public finance company has already received five requests to provide bond insurance in both the primary and secondary market. MBIA Insurance...

Stimulus Funds Bring Minnesota Gap Down $278 Million From Last Estimate.(The Regions)
March 4, 2009... Byline: Yvette Shields CHICAGO - Minnesota faces a $4.6 billion deficit in the next biennium, down about $278 million from the last formal estimate in December, thanks to federal stimulus funds. The latest state economic forecast...

Yields Up Yet Again; Utah Sells $394M of GOs.(Market News)
March 4, 2009... Byline: Michael Scarchilli For the 10th consecutive session, yields in the tax-exempt market rose yesterday, as Utah sold $394.3 million of general obligation bonds in the primary. Morgan Stanley priced the bonds for the state in the...

Bernanke: Indicators Show Little Improvement.(Market News Briefs)
March 4, 2009... Byline: Gary E. Siegel With near-term indicators showing little sign of improvement, the Federal Open Market Committee sees the federal funds rate remaining low for "some time," Federal Reserve Board chairman Ben S. Bernanke told Congress...

Geithner: Deficit Must Be Cut to 3% of GDP.(Market News Briefs)
March 4, 2009... Byline: Gary E. Siegel The federal deficit must be cut to 3% of gross domestic product so debt growth doesn't outpace economic growth, Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner told the House Ways and Means Committee yesterday. The current $1.3...

Fed/Treasury Announce $200B TALF For Assets.(Market News Briefs)
March 4, 2009... Byline: Gary E. Siegel The Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve said they will launch the $200 billion Term Asset-backed Securities Loan Facility on March 17, with funding available March 25. "The TALF has the potential to...

Pending Home Sales Index Slumps to 80.4: NAR.(Market News Briefs)
March 4, 2009... Byline: Gary E. Siegel Pending home sales decreased 7.7% to a reading of 80.4 in January from a downwardly revised 87.1 in December, originally reported as 87.7, according to an index released yesterday by the National Association of...

TRENDS IN THE REGION: Illinois At 'Tipping Point,' Report Warns.(Midwest)
March 4, 2009... Byline: Yvette Shields CHICAGO - Illinois is nearing a "financial tipping point," with the state facing the loss of businesses, investment, and jobs as its fiscal position has dramatically worsened over the last two years, according to an...

Municipal Yield Curve Flattens a Bit.(News)
March 4, 2009... Byline: Dan Seymour A month after inclining to its steepest slope in decades, the municipal yield curve has flattened a bit. Analysts and strategists say investors grew impatient with the paltry yields on short- and intermediate-term...

RATING ACTIONS: S&P Drops Bank of America Corp. To A, Bank Subsidiaries to A-Plus.(Underwriters and Dealers)
March 5, 2009... Byline: Jack Herman Standard & Poor's Tuesday dropped Bank of America Corp. to A from A-plus, citing economic weakness that will put more pressure on earnings than the agency expected when it downgraded the company in December. The rating...

Municipal Bond Activities.(The Regions)
March 5, 2009... March 5 The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority will hold its annual Fixed Income Conference at the Westin New York hotel in Times Square. It will focus on current market impacts on fixed income, and how regulators and firms are...

Southeast Bond-Watch.(Southeast)
March 5, 2009... Byline: Shelly Sigo, Jim Watts, Lynne Funk FLORIDA Tolls Hiked At Last The Orlando-Orange County Expressway Authority last Thursday increased tolls in central Florida for the first time in nearly nine years. The base toll will...

Florida's Crist Pushes Budget in State of the State.(The Regions)
March 5, 2009... Byline: Shelly Sigo BRADENTON, Fla. -Recognizing the difficult economic conditions ahead, Florida Gov. Charlie Crist Tuesday night asked lawmakers to shed partisan differences and cooperate. In his state of the state address before a...

MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS: Montana's D.A. Davidson Completes Ruan Deal, Boosts Iowa Presence.(Underwriters & Dealers)
March 5, 2009... Byline: Yvette Shields CHICAGO - Montana-based D.A. Davidson & Co. has extended its reach into Iowa following the completion of its acquisition last weekend of Des Moines-based brokerage Ruan Securities Corp. and its 13-member team, which...

NEW HIRES: Greenberg Traurig Adds Boye From Chapman and Cutler.(Underwriters & Dealers)
March 5, 2009... Byline: Yvette Shields CHICAGO - Miami-based Greenberg Traurig LLP has hired veteran Chicago-based Chapman and Cutler LLP bond attorney Deborah Thomas Boye, providing a national boost for the firm's utility and environmental facilities...

HOUSING: Plans for Fannie and Freddie to Help HFA Liquidity Coming Soon: Officials.(Washington)
March 5, 2009... Byline: Lynne Funk Obama administration officials released details of their plan to curtail the foreclosure crisis yesterday, but said they are still working on how the federal government will provide liquidity for state housing finance...

IRS: Karen Hawkins Appointed to Lead Office of Professional Responsibility.(Washington)
March 5, 2009... Byline: Peter Schroeder Karen L. Hawkins, a partner at the boutique tax law firm of Taggart & Hawkins in Oakland, has been appointed head of the Internal Revenue Service's office of professional responsibility, the IRS announced Tuesday....

Massachusetts Treasurer: Lottery Sale, Slots Could Net $4B.(The Regions)
March 5, 2009... Byline: Michelle Kaske Massachusetts could gain roughly $4 billion in up-front payments by privatizing its lottery system and licensing three slot machine parlors, according to state Treasurer Timothy Cahill. Cahill yesterday announced...

MSRB Seeks More Time for Fund Program.(Washington)
March 5, 2009... Byline: Andrew Ackerman WASHINGTON - The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board this week called for the Treasury Department to extend the termination date for its $50 billion temporary guarantee program for money market mutual funds to...

Muni Losses Extend to 11th Straight Session.(Market News)
March 5, 2009... Byline: Michael Scarchilli Against a backdrop of stock market gains, Treasury market losses, and a healthy slate of new issuance in the primary market, tax-exempts posted losses for the 11th consecutive session yesterday. In the...

IN BRIEF: Lockhart Cites Stress From Commercial Real Estate.(Market News)
March 5, 2009... Byline: Market News International Atlanta Federal Reserve Bank president Dennis Lockhart expressed concern yesterday about mounting problems in the commercial real estate market, which he said could "further complicate" government efforts...

IN BRIEF: ISM Non-Mfg Index Falls to 41.6 in February.(Market News)
March 5, 2009... Byline: Gary E. Siegel The Institute for Supply Management's non-manufacturing business activity composite index was 41.6 in February, down from 42.9 in January, on a seasonally adjusted basis, the group said yesterday. Economists...

IN BRIEF: Beige Book Sees Further Broad-Based Deterioration.(Market News)
March 5, 2009... Byline: Market News International The "beige book," the Federal Reserve's latest survey of economic conditions around the country, shows further and "broad-based" deterioration in economic activity nationwide. The report also suggests...

Cleveland Port Faces Delinquent Borrower.(The Regions)
March 5, 2009... Byline: Caitlin Devitt CHICAGO - Months after narrowly avoiding its first default, the Cleveland-Cuyahoga County Port Authority is faced with another delinquent bond-fund borrower that has warned it would likely have a tough time making...

FortuAfA[+ or -]o Looks to Layoffs, Tax Hikes; Puerto Rico's Plan To Save Ratings.(The Regions)
March 5, 2009... Byline: Michelle Kaske With an eye towards retaining Puerto Rico'sinvestment-grade rating, Gov. Luis FortuAA[+ or -]o late Tuesday announced a proposal to cut 30,000 government jobs and temporarily raise business and individual income...

RATING AGENCIES: S&P Offers Mea Culpa On Ratings; White Paper Pushes Oversight, Disclosure.(Washington)
March 5, 2009... Byline: Andrew Ackerman WASHINGTON - Standard & Poor's issued a white paper yesterday that embraced increased global oversight of rating agencies, including rules that require "robust" disclosure of rating criteria and methodologies and...

INFRASTRUCTURE: House Panel to Weigh Water, Airport Funding, Address White House Budget.(Washington)
March 5, 2009... Byline: Audrey Dutton The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee is slated to vote today on two bills that would authorize federal funding for water infrastructure and airports - including bond-related funds - and to outline how...

TRENDS IN THE REGION: Hurricane Debate on Florida's Horizon.(Southeast)
March 5, 2009... Byline: Shelly Sigo BRADENTON, Fla. - Reform of Florida's residential insurance market likely will be a hot topic during the Legislature's annual session, which began on Tuesday, A new nonprofit group called Shield Our State is...

In Tough Times, Even Stingy Utah Turns to Bonds, With $3.3B on Tap.(The Regions)
March 5, 2009... Byline: Richard Williamson DALLAS -Utah will turn to the bond market to ease its budget crunch, issuing up to $3.3 billion of debt this year for expansion of Interstate 15 under an agreement between Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. and legislative...

SEC Muni Chief: More Disclosure; Focuses on Short-Term IDB Conduits.(Washington)
March 6, 2009... Byline: Andrew Ackerman ORLANDO - The Securities and Exchange Commission's municipal securities chief urged bond attorneys meeting here yesterday to disclose more information about the underlying borrower in certain conduit deals that are...

Munis Stand Pat, Ending Run of Weakness.(Market News)
March 6, 2009... Byline: Michael Scarchilli Municipals yesterday ended an 11-session string of weakness that began last month, while new issues led with a $457.9 million revenue bond sale by the California State University Trustees. Munis ended...

Treasury Lends a Hand; Guidance on BABs, Tax-Credit Bonds Within 30 Days.(Washington)
March 6, 2009... Byline: Peter Schroeder ORLANDO - The Treasury Department is hoping to release guidance within the next 30 days on how the direct payment option of the Build America Bonds program will work, as well as the amount of tax-credit bonds that...

IN BRIEF: 4Q Productivity Down 0.4%; Labor Costs Increase 5.7%.(Market News)
March 6, 2009... Byline: Gary E. Siegel U.S. nonfarm unit productivity fell at a 0.4% annual rate in the fourth quarter, off from the 3.2% growth estimates in the preliminary reading and from 1.5% growth in the third quarter, the Bureau of Labor Statistics...

IN BRIEF: Jobless Claims Fall 31,000 To 639,000 in Feb. 28 Week.(Market News)
March 6, 2009... Byline: Market News International Initial claims for state unemployment fell back 31,000 in the Feb. 28 week to 639,000, the Labor Department reported yesterday. A Market News International survey had expected the initial claims level...

IN BRIEF: Factory Orders Slip 1.9%; Ex-Transportation Off 0.9%.(Market News)
March 6, 2009... Byline: Gary E. Siegel New factory orders for manufactured goods slumped 1.9% in January, the Commerce Department said yesterday. The factory order decrease, to $351.926 billion, was smaller than the 3.5% decrease projected by Thomson...

Stimulus Should Boost West Coast IDBs.(Market News)
March 6, 2009... Byline: Rich Saskal SAN FRANCISCO - Some provisions in the federal stimulus bill should broaden the base of eligible users of industrial development bonds and private facility bonds in a way that should particularly benefit West Coast...