The Bond Buyer articles from October 2008

The Bond Buyer archives from October 2008

Lawmakers Aim to Entice Bailout Holdouts.(News)
October 1, 2008... Byline: Cheyenne Hopkins WASHINGTON - Lawmakers are considering extending the Treasury Department's federal guaranty program for money market mutual funds, suspending fair value accounting, and raising the deposit insurance limit at banks,...

Midwest Bond-Watch.(Midwest)
October 1, 2008... Byline: Yvette Shields, Caitlin Devitt ILLINOIS Tollway Head Hits the Exit The Illinois State Toll Highway Authority's executive director, Brian McPartlin, announced last week he would step down later this month to take a...

Deal In Focus: Detroit Medical Center Prepares to Enter Market After 10 Year Absence.(The Regions)
October 1, 2008... Byline: Caitlin Devitt CHICAGO - After years of near financial collapse, Detroit's largest safety-net hospital is enjoying its fourth straight year of operating profitability and now hopes to enter the bond market for the first time in a...

Dexia SA Gets $9.2 Billion Capital Injection as Two Executives Resign.(Underwriters and Dealers)
October 1, 2008... Byline: Jack Herman In a move that aims to shore up the parent of one the most active insurers in the municipal bond market, three countries and existing shareholders yesterday propped up Franco-Belgian bank Dexia SA by injecting about...

Judge Sets Hearing in Jefferson Co. Case.(News)
October 1, 2008... Byline: Shelly Sigo BRADENTON, Fla. - As Jefferson County, Ala., was poised to default on its debt payments yesterday, a federal judge set a hearing for Friday in the lawsuit seeking to have a receiver appointed for the county's...

Massachusetts Postpones Notes Sale Until Next Week.(The Regions)
October 1, 2008... Byline: Michelle Kaske Due to current market turmoil, Massachusetts late yesterday postponed to next Tuesday its upcoming $700 million general obligation short-term note sale. The competitive sale was originally set for tomorrow. ...

N.Y.C.'s Municipal Assistance Corp. Holds Final Board Meeting.(The Regions)
October 1, 2008... Byline: Ted Phillips As Wall Street faced the ongoing financial crisis yesterday, a vestige of another troubled time closed its doors. The Municipal Assistance Corp., which was created to save New York City from bankruptcy in 1975, held...

Chicago Eyes Lease For Midway; Privatization Would Bring in $2.5 Billion.(The Regions)
October 1, 2008... Byline: Yvette Shields CHICAGO -Chicago would receive $2.52 billion under a pioneering lease agreement that, if approved by city and federal authorities, would hand over operations of Midway Airport to a private consortium - Midway...

Munis Finish Weaker by 4-5 Basis Points.(Market News)
October 1, 2008... Byline: Michael Scarchilli The municipal market was weaker by four or five basis points yesterday, in line with Treasuries, which saw a reversal of Monday's steep gains as lawmakers expressed intent to salvage the $700 billion bailout plan...

Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority Puts Off $175 Million Deal.(The Regions)
October 1, 2008... Byline: Lynne Funk WASHINGTON - Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority officials postponed the sale of $175 million airport system revenue bonds that was scheduled to come to market today in a negotiated deal after market conditions...

NAPM-NY Index Contracts For 8th Time in 9 Months.(Market News)
October 1, 2008... Byline: Gary E. Siegel New York City businesses suffered a downturn in September, contracting for the eighth time in the past nine months, according to the National Association of Purchasing Management-New York's Report on Business. ...

Consumer Confidence Edges Up Slightly.(Market News)
October 1, 2008... Byline: Yong Lim The Conference Board consumer confidence index, which had improved moderately in August, posted a slight gain in September. The index now stands at 59.8, up from 58.5 in August. The present situation index decreased to...

Chicago PMI Drops To 56.7 in September.(Market News)
October 1, 2008... Byline: Yong Lim The Chicago Purchasing Managers reported the Chicago Business Barometer confirmed the August surge with a solid 56.7 reading. The prices paid index was above 80 for the eighth month this year. Employment approached...

Treasury 4-Weeks Go At 1.010% High Yield.(Market News)
October 1, 2008... Byline: Yong Lim The Treasury Department yesterday auctioned $25 billion of four-week bills at a 1.010% high yield, a price of 99.921444. The coupon equivalent was 1.025%. The bid-to-cover ratio was 2.80. Tenders at the high rate...

Disclosure: NIIDS Starts as Primary Market Slows Way Down to Virtual Halt.(Washington)
October 1, 2008... Byline: Lynn Hume The primary municipal bond market may have ground to a virtual halt, but yesterday marked the startup of the New Issue Information Dissemination System, which is designed to improve the accuracy and timeliness of...

New York Gov. Paterson Creates Panel To Study Potential P3s for State Assets.(The Regions)
October 1, 2008... Byline: Ted Phillips New York will study the potential privatization of state assets through long-term leases, Gov. David Paterson announced yesterday. Public-private partnerships could allow the state to leverage its assets to make...

Raters Negative on Prepaid Gas Bonds Due to Credit of Counterparty Citigroup.(The Regions)
October 1, 2008... Byline: Richard Williamson DALLAS - Rating analysts have placed $1.23 billion of prepaid gas bonds from Salt Verde Financial Corp. on watch for possible downgrade based on the credit rating of counterparty Citigroup. The moves by...

Attorney Files for Second Rehearing in Florida's Strand v. Escambia TIF Case.(The Regions)
October 1, 2008... Byline: Shelly Sigo BRADENTON, Fla. -Tax increment financing in Florida is back in limbo again. A motion was filed last Monday with the state Supreme Court by Gregory Strand's attorney seeking what would be a rare second rehearing in...

Dallas School District Starts Cutting Staff to Cover $84M Budget Shortfall.(The Regions)
October 1, 2008... Byline: Jason Philyaw DALLAS - The Dallas Independent School District began cutting staff this week with the elimination of at least 160 non-contract jobs, as officials try to cover an $84 million budget shortfall disclosed last month. ...

New Issuance Slows to A Crawl in September; Volume Down 40% From Last Year.(News)
October 1, 2008... Byline: Jack Herman and Christine Albano New-issue volume in September plummeted nearly 40% from last year as the primary municipal market contracted dramatically in the second half of the month amid the broader credit crisis. New...

Senate Poised to Pass Modified Bailout Bill.(News)
October 2, 2008... Byline: Peter Schroeder WASHINGTON - The Senate was expected last night to approve a modified $700 billion bailout plan that included more than $2 billion of bond-related tax extensions, renewable energy incentives, and disaster relief, as...

Municipal Bond Activities.(News)
October 2, 2008... October 2-3 The Bond Buyer will host its 9th Annual Nonprofit Hospital Finance Conference at the Paris Hotel in Las Vegas. Hear from hospital finance officers, investors, credit analysts, investment bankers, attorneys, and other...

Southeast Bond-Watch.(Southeast)
October 2, 2008... Byline: Shelly Sigo, Lynne Funk ALABAMA Siegelman Seeks Reprieve Former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman is preparing to argue why his 2006 conviction on corruption charges should be overturned. The cases of Siegelman and...

Legislation: Bush Signs Short-Term Budget, FAA Stopgap Measure.(Washington)
October 2, 2008... Byline: Audrey Dutton President Bush has signed into law a short-term appropriations bill to keep the federal government in operation through March 6, and a six-month stopgap measure that will fund the Federal Aviation Administration and...

Treasury Extends ARS Deadline; Issuers Can Hold Debt Through '09.(News)
October 2, 2008... Byline: Peter Schroeder WASHINGTON - The Treasury Department announced yesterday that governmental issuers can purchase and hold auction-rate securities, variable-rate demand bonds with seven-day put options, and tax-exempt commercial...

More Time for Superdome ARS Deal.(News)
October 2, 2008... Byline: Jim Watts DALLAS - Louisiana yesterday won a longer reprieve than it expected from the U.S. Treasury Department on converting its auction-rate securities for the Superdome in New Orleans. Treasury officials notified...

Bond Insurers; MBIA Closes Deal to Reinsure $166B of FGIC's Public Finance Book.(Underwriters and Dealers)
October 2, 2008... Byline: Jack Herman MBIA Inc. yesterday closed on its transaction to reinsure a $166 billion portion of Financial Guaranty Insurance Co.'s $200 billion public finance book, following the New York Insurance Department's approval of the deal...

Mutual Funds: Morgan Stanley to Refinance ARPS, Looks to TOBs for New Liquidity.(Investors and Investing)
October 2, 2008... Byline: Patrick Temple-West WASHINGTON - Morgan Stanley announced Monday it will refinance illiquid auction-rate preferred shares with tender options bonds, created from municipal securities in 10 of its closed-end municipal funds, to...

Ronald Stack, Late of Lehman, Takes Over as MSRB Chair.(Washington)
October 2, 2008... Byline: Lynn Hume Ronald A. Stack, managing director and head of finance at Barclays Capital in New York, became chairman of the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board yesterday, less than two weeks after his former firm,Lehman Brothers...

Munis Weaker as Market Eyes Bailout Resolution.(Market News)
October 2, 2008... Byline: Michael Scarchilli & Jack Herman The municipal market was weaker by two to four basis points yesterday, as participants to continue to await an eventual resolution on the potential $700 billion federal government bailout plan. ...

In Brief: 42-Day Cash Bills Draw 1.100% High Rate.(Market News)
October 2, 2008... Byline: Yong Lim The Treasury Department yesterday sold $50 billion of 42-day cash management bills, due Nov. 13, at a 1.100% high tender rate. The bid to cover ratio was 2.80. The coupon equivalent was 1.117%. The price was 99.871667....

In Brief: September PMI Drops To 43.5 From 49.9.(Market News)
October 2, 2008... Byline: Yong Lim Manufacturing contracted in September as the purchasing managers index registered 43.5, 6.4 points lower than the 49.9 reported in August. This is the lowest reading since October 2001, when PMI registered 40.8. A reading...

In Brief: September Online Job Demand Drops 216,000.(Market News)
October 2, 2008... Byline: Yong Lim Online advertised vacancies fell by a seasonally adjusted 216,000 to 4,418,000 in September, with widespread losses across states and regions, according to the Conference Board's help-wanted online data aeries released...

In Brief: August Construction at $1.072 Trillion Annual Rate.(Market News)
October 2, 2008... Byline: Yong Lim The Census Bureau announced yesterday that construction spending during August 2008 was estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $1.0721 trillion, nearly the same as the revised July estimate of $1.0718 trillion....

Report: N.J.'s Unfunded OPEB Liability Down $7.4B From Last Year.(The Regions)
October 2, 2008... Byline: Michelle Kaske New Jersey received $7.4 billion of good news this week as an outside actuarial report now pegs the state's unfunded other post-employment benefit liability at $50.65 billion, down from the previous years' shortfall...

New Mexico Looks for Opening to Issue $500M of Notes.(The Regions)
October 2, 2008... Byline: Richard Williamson DALLAS - Amid an unprecedented credit freeze, New Mexico is adjusting to the declining fortunes of its finance partners and scouting for a market opening to issue $500 million of notes to cover government...

Pennsylvania Governor Not Giving Up on Leasing Turnpike.(The Regions)
October 2, 2008... Byline: Michelle Kaske While a $12.8 billion long-term lease bid for the Pennsylvania Turnpike expired this week, Gov. Edward Rendell plans to revisit the issue in the next two-year legislative session. The bidding consortium of Citi...

Rankings: Turmoil Shakes Rankings; Citi Retains Top Slot Despite Shifts.(Underwriters and Dealers)
October 2, 2008... Byline: Jack Herman Market turmoil continued to shake up the league tables during the third quarter, with more changes likely on the way thanks to recent shifts in the market landscape. Citi remained the top senior manager through the...

Enforcement: SEC Settlement Penalizes Supervisor in Bradbury Case.(Washington)
October 2, 2008... Byline: Lynn Hume Stephen R. Moynahan has been barred from acting as a supervisor at a broker-dealer firm, suspended from the dealer community for six months, and ordered to pay $140,000 under a settlement of Securities and Exchange...

Trends In The Region: Jefferson Co. Prepares for Lengthy Court Battle Over Receivership.(Southeast)
October 2, 2008... Byline: Shelly Sigo BRADENTON, Fla. - As Jefferson County, Ala., commissioners meet today to consider a seven-day extension of their sewer and general obligation forbearance agreements, officials face a protracted and expensive legal...

Wayne County, Mich., Airport Agency Looks to Refund $75M.(The Regions)
October 2, 2008... Byline: Caitlin Devitt CHICAGO - After postponing a planned bond issue this week amid ongoing market turmoil, the Wayne County Airport Authority - operator of Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport - hopes to enter a more stable market...

Five Wisconsin School Districts Sue Stifel, RBC Over CDOs.(The Regions)
October 2, 2008... Byline: Yvette Shields CHICAGO -Five southeastern Wisconsin school districts this week filed a lawsuit against Stifel Nicolaus & Co. and the Royal Bank of Canada, alleging that the firms fraudulently misrepresented the safety of an...

Bond Insurers: Ambac Assurance Seeks Dismissal Of Lawsuit Filed by New Orleans.(Underwriters and Dealers)
October 3, 2008... Byline: Jack Herman A lawsuit filed by New Orleans alleging that "mismanagement" and "greed" at Ambac Assurance Corp. cost the city millions of dollars is nothing more than "a lot of sound and fury," the insurer said in a motion seeking...

House Oversight Committee Schedules Hearings to Examine Market Turmoil.(News)
October 3, 2008... Byline: Lynne Funk WASHINGTON - The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee plans to hold five hearings this month to examine the "regulatory mistakes and financial excesses" that led to the turmoil that has hit the financial...

Transportation: Airport Capital Needs Growing, FAA Warns.(Washington)
October 3, 2008... Byline: Audrey Dutton The capital needs of airports across the country are expected to grow significantly during the next five years, the Federal Aviation Administration warned in a report issued yesterday. The National Plan of...

Presidential Surrogates Present Health Plans at Hospital Conference.(News)(Conference news)
October 3, 2008... Byline: Rich Saskal LAS VEGAS - The ongoing crisis in the markets was evident yesterday in the hallways and at the podium of The Bond Buyer's annual Nonprofit Hospital Finance Conference here. "What a difference a year makes, and oh,...

Sisters of St. Francis Health Services Seeks New-Money Deal.(The Regions)
October 3, 2008... Byline: Caitlin Devitt CHICAGO -Indiana-based Sisters of St. Francis Health Services Inc. hopes to try again soon to get a long-postponed new-money deal sold, possibly by next week. The system is planning a $280 million bond issue that...

Yields: Weekly Indexes Rise Amid Uncertainty Over Bailout.(Investors and Investing)
October 3, 2008... Byline: Michael Scarchilli The Bond Buyer's weekly yield indexes rose this week, amid continued market turmoil and uncertainty over a federal bailout package. "The market is all over the place," said Fred Yosca, managing director and...

Jefferson County OKs Seven-Day Forbearance Extension.(News)
October 3, 2008... Byline: Shelly Sigo BRADENTON, Fla. - Jefferson County commissioners yesterday voted 3 to 2 to approved a seven-day extension of its forbearance agreements with banks and swap counterparties at the request of Alabama Gov. Bob Riley. ...

Massachusetts Pinched; Bay State Bemoans Bailout Bottleneck.(News)
October 3, 2008... Byline: Michelle Kaske Delayed progress of the federal government's market bailout continues to restrict state and local governments' abilities to raise money, Massachusetts Treasurer Timothy Cahill saidyesterday. On the same day, Gov....

MBIA Sues Countrywide for RMBS Fraud.(News)
October 3, 2008... Byline: Jack Herman Fraudulent practices and false representations made by units at Countrywide Financial Corp. led MBIA Insurance Corp. to guarantee mortgage-backed securities that have already cost the insurer $459 million in policy...

Money Market Funds: Tax-Exempts Continue to Rebound Gradually as Outflows Slow.(Investors & Investing)
October 3, 2008... Byline: Christine Albano Tax-exempt money market funds continue to show signs of gradual improvement this week. The pace of outflows have slowed and the attractive high rates compared to taxable money market funds are enticing...

Munis Unchanged With Firmer Tone.(Market News)
October 3, 2008... Byline: Michael Scarchilli & Jack Herman The municipal market was unchanged with a firmer tone yesterday after the Senate Wednesday night approved its version of the much-discussed $700 billion Wall Street bailout plan by the federal...

In Brief: Jobless Claims Up 1,000 to 497,000.(Market News)
October 3, 2008... Byline: Market News International WASHINGTONInitial claims for state unemployment rose 1,000 to a five-year high of 497,000 in the Sept. 27 week, again boosted by the effects of Texas and Louisiana hurricanes, the Labor Department reported...

Factory Orders Fall 4.0%; Ex-Transportation Off 3.3%.(Market News)
October 3, 2008... Byline: Gary E. Siegel New factory orders for manufactured goods slumped 4.0% in August, the Commerce Department said yesterday. The factory order decrease, to $444.365 billion, was larger than the 2.5% decrease projected by Thomson...

In Brief: European Central Bank Holds All Rates Steady.(Market News)
October 3, 2008... Byline: Gary E. Siegel The European Central Bank announced that its Governing Council held interest rates steady at its latest monetary policy meeting yesterday morning. The marginal lending rate remains 5.25%, the minimum bid rate on...

RICHARD H. LOWES.(The Regions)
October 3, 2008... Friends and colleagues of veteran credit analyst Richard H. "Rick" Lowes will remember the diehard Chicago Cubs fan on Thursday at a memorial being held at Ceres CafAA[c] in the Board of Trade Building in downtown Chicago. Lowes, who was...

World Trade Center Reconstruction Costs Up $1.5B, Port Authority Says.(The Regions)
October 3, 2008... Byline: Ted Phillips The World Trade Center site will cost about $1.5 billion more and take longer to complete than originally estimated, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey said yesterday. The Port Authority, following a...

Brazos Asks Investors to Tender ARS; Will Pay Below Par In Citi Restructuring.(News)
October 3, 2008... Byline: Andrew Ackerman WASHINGTON - The Brazos Higher Education Service Corp., one of the largest nonprofit student loan lenders in the country, may be the first to ask its institutional investors to voluntarily tender, at less than par,...

Syncora Holdings Hires JPMorgan as Adviser for Counterparty Negotiations.(News)
October 3, 2008... Byline: Jack Herman Syncora Holdings Ltd. has hired JPMorgan as an adviser on its bond insurer subsidiary Syncora Guarantee Inc.'s negotiations with bank counterparties. JPMorgan will work with Syncora's legal advisers during...

Trends In The Region: In San Francisco, a Clean Energy Fight.(Far West)
October 3, 2008... Byline: Andrew Ward SAN FRANCISCO - San Francisco voters will decide a public power ballot measure next month that could make California's fourth-largest city the first in the nation to require that all of its electricity come from...

Regulation: Crisis Fallout Leads to Questions About Arbitrage Calculation.(Washington)
October 3, 2008... Byline: Peter Schroeder The financial crisis - which led to Lehman Brothers' bankruptcy filing and virtually locked up the variable-rate demand obligation market along with the auction-rate securities market - has led municipal issuers to...

Marquette Goes Forward With One Sale, Holds Another; ThedaCare Delays Deal.(The Regions)
October 3, 2008... Byline: Yvette Shields CHICAGO -ThedaCare Inc. and Marquette University - two Wisconsin-based tax-exempt borrowers that sought first-time ratings - joined the list of issuers with deals on hold this week due to the rise in long-term...

Far West Bond-Watch.(Far West)
October 3, 2008... Byline: Rich Saskal, Andrew Ward CALIFORNIA A New Record: 415 Vetoes Several more pieces of bond-related legislation fell victim to California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's veto pen, as he worked to dispose of bills before...

Guest Words: The Restructuring of ACA: Model or Cautionary Tale?(Commentary)
October 6, 2008... Byline: Russell Fraser, Thomas Hoens, and Robert Smith With the Aug. 7 announcement by the Maryland Insurance Administration regarding the restructuring of ACA Financial Guaranty, there are questions in the market about how it was designed,...

Mutual Fund: Weekly Reporters See Outflows of $868M.(Investors and Investing)
October 6, 2008... Byline: Michael Scarchilli Weekly reporting municipal bond mutual funds had a net outflow of $848 million during the period ending Sept. 24, AMG Data Services reported. The results were down from a $398 million outflow the previous...

Rescue Bill Passes, With $3B in New Debt; House Measures Include AMT Patch.(News)
October 6, 2008... Byline: Peter Schroeder WASHINGTON -The second time was the charm for House members Friday, as they reversed Monday's defeat of the $700 billion financial rescue package, which included more than $3 billion in new bond authorizations, and...

Northeast Bond-Watch.(Northeast)
October 6, 2008... Byline: Lynne Funk, Michelle Kaske, Ted Phillips DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Waterfront Land Deal Signed The District of Columbia last week signed a land disposition agreement with Hoffman-Struever Waterfront LLC that will allow the...

Panelists Look to Post-Crisis Era For Nonprofit Health Care Finance.(News)(Discussion)
October 6, 2008... Byline: Rich Saskal LAS VEGAS - What is clear: the landscape for nonprofit health care financing has changed. What is not so clear: what that landscape will look like after the current credit crisis wanes, according to participants last...

Cook County, Ill., Moves to Strip Tony Retirement Tower of Tax Exemption.(The Region)
October 6, 2008... Byline: Caitlin Devitt CHICAGO - The Cook County, Ill., assessor's office has moved to strip the property-tax exemption from an upscale bond-financed retirement community located in a downtown Chicago building owned by Loyola University....

S&P Affirms Florida's AAA Rating Despite Halt in Growth.(The Regions)
October 6, 2008... Byline: Shelly Sigo BRADENTON, Fla. - Standard & Poor's last week affirmed Florida's triple-A general obligation rating and stable outlook, but said the state's economic growth has come to a halt. Housing market deflation compounded by...

'The Glebe' in Tough Spot After Default.(The Regions)
October 6, 2008... Byline: Lynne Funk WASHINGTON - Investors who bought $55.5 million of bonds to help construct the Glebe, an upscale continuing-care retirement community near Roanoke, Va., face major uncertainties with their investments after the facility...

Louisiana OKs State's Continued Holding of Stadium District ARS.(The Regions)
October 6, 2008... Byline: Jim Watts DALLAS - The Louisiana State Bond Commission gave its approval on Friday to the state's continued holding of auction-rate bonds issued by the Louisiana Stadium and Exposition District that the state purchased in April...

Bailout Passage Sparks Optimism From California Treasury Official.(News)
October 6, 2008... Byline: Rich Saskal LAS VEGAS - A California state Treasury official - facing the need to borrow $7 billion in the short-term markets this month - expressed optimism that the $700 billion bailout enacted Friday would get the markets...

MassPike Debt Crisis Prompts Calls for Toll Hikes, Dismantling.(The Regions)
October 6, 2008... Byline: Michelle Kaske Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick last week called for dismantling the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority and merging it into another state transportation agency. Meanwhile, one MassPike board member is calling for...

Market Shows Little Reaction to House Vote.(Market News)
October 6, 2008... Byline: Michael Scarchilli The municipal market was firmer by about two basis points Friday as it showed little immediate reaction to the House passing the Senate-approved version of the much-discussed $700 billion federal government...

In Brief: Non-Farm Payrolls Fall 159,000 in Sept.(Market News)
October 6, 2008... Byline: Market News International WASHINGTONSeptember employment data were another recession-like report, marking the ninth month of payroll declines with no apparent effects from the bad weather or strikes. September payrolls printed...

In Brief: Sept. ISM Non-Mfg Index 50.2 From 50.6 in Aug.(Market News)
October 6, 2008... Byline: Gary E. Siegel The Institute for Supply Management's non-manufacturing business activity composite index was 50.2 in September, down from 50.6 in August, on a seasonally adjusted basis, the group said Friday. Economists polled...

In Brief: ECRI Inflation Gauge Dips to 103.7 in Sept.(Market News)
October 6, 2008... Byline: Gary E. Siegel U.S. inflationary pressures were lower in August as the U.S. future inflation gauge fell to six-year low of 103.7 from a downwardly revised 107.3 in August, originally reported as 109.3, according to data released...

N.Y. Gov. Paterson Calls for $2B in Additional Cuts This Year.(The Regions)
October 6, 2008... Byline: Ted Phillips Facing a deficit of at least $1.2 billion that he said could reach $2 billion in the current fiscal year, New York Gov. David Paterson on Friday called for a special legislative session next month to cut the budget....

Congress Passes Extension of Rum Tax Through 2009.(The Regions)
October 6, 2008... Byline: Michelle Kaske Rum tax revenues will continue to flow to Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands through the end of next year after Congress last week passed a bill to extend a $13.50 per-gallon tax on the rum produced there. ...

Trends In The Region: In New York, Even Top-Rated Issuers Worry About Finding Bidders for Notes.(Northeast)
October 6, 2008... Byline: Ted Phillips When triple-A rated Cold Spring Harbor Central School District in Long Island, N.Y., has sold short-term debt in years past, finding bidders wasn't a problem. But with the credit markets nearly frozen, even top-rated...

Mergers and Aquisitions: Citi Balks as Wells Fargo Courts Wachovia.(Underwriters and Dealers)
October 6, 2008... Byline: Jack Herman Conflict ignited Friday over Wachovia Corp. after the bank announced a deal to sell itself to Wells Fargo & Co. for $15 billion despite a pact it had agreed to in principle with Citigroup Inc. earlier in the week. ...

The Week Ahead: Betting On A Bailout Bounce; Volume Still Down As Caution Reigns.(Investors & Investing)(Calendar)
October 6, 2008... Byline: Christine Albano The deep freeze that the primary market has endured the last two weeks may begin to thaw a bit this week, aided by the much-anticipated news on Friday that the House approved the $700 billion financial rescue plan....