Pennsylvania and Arizona lead state and local governments set to borrow about $13 billion in the U.S. municipal bond market this week, and the increased supply may offer some bargains for investors.
Pennsylvania, which last week voted to expand table games at slot-machine parlors to raise revenue for budget gaps, will take bids from banks on $900 million of general obligation bonds, including $600 million of taxable Build America Bonds.
Arizona, one of the states hardest hit by home-mortgage foreclosures, will borrow $733 million to pay for services. This week’s sales include a $770 million issue by the city of Chicago. Weekly fixed-rate issuance last month averaged $6.2 billion, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
“Deals will have to come attractively priced to move the supply,” said Tom Spalding, a senior investment officer at Nuveen Investments Inc. in Chicago who oversees $10 billion of municipal debt. “If you’re a believer that traditional tax- exempt supply is going to be limited in 2010, then it’ll be a fairly good opportunity to dip your toe in the water.”
Yields on municipal general obligation securities maturing in 20 years rose 0.06 percentage point, or 6 basis points, last week to 4.31 percent, according to the Bond Buyer 20 General Obligation Bond index.
Demand for municipal issues traditionally rises in January as bondholders reinvest coupon payments. At least $30 billion may be reinvested this month, said Rob Amodeo, a portfolio manager at Pasadena, California-based Western Asset Management Co., who helps oversee $40 billion of local government debt.
Build America
The federal Build America program, created by the February 2009 economic stimulus plan, will continue to sap supply of traditional tax-exempt debt to about $300 billion this year, Spalding said. The program, under which the U.S. Treasury pays 35 percent of interest costs, produced more than $60 billion in taxable issues by states and municipalities last year, and sales may reach $150 billion in 2010, according to Municipal Market Advisors.
Pennsylvania will come to market this week with the biggest-ever competitive auction of Build America Bonds to help pay for capital projects, including the expansion of the state convention center in Philadelphia, said Rick Dreher, the state’s director of the bureau of revenue, cash flow and debt.
Moody’s Investors Service rates Pennsylvania’s general obligations at Aa2, its third-highest investment grade.
Source
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Monday, February 15, 2010
Money Matters: The National Debt
It's a number that could keep you up at night: $12 trillion. The national debt has increased by $3.9 billion per day since September of 2007. And your individual share of it is now nearly $40,000. Some KELOLAND college students are wondering how it's going to affect their future.
It's a disaster movie, but this is about seeing red in the federal budget. "I.O.U.S.A." is making the rounds on college campuses, hoping to help students understand the long term consequences of the national debt.
"Many student and many citizens don't realize the dire financial situation the U.S. may find itself in, in a few years," Professor Robert Wright said.
The film had a powerful impact on its viewers.
"I knew it was a really large issue we were facing, but after watching the movie, it dramatically changed my outlook on it. I realized how big a problem it is, seems impossible to get out of how everything is going now," student Cami Koehn said.
But the professor who brought the movie to Sioux Falls doesn't want it leaving the students hopeless. He wants them to help reverse the trend.
"They can by being politically active and vote for candidates who promise to tighten our nation's ship," Wright said.
"We're coming to the end of college and we're going to be in the real world and have to face the debt and everything going on. We have to take the initiative to change that," student Nick Andreas said.
"It's not something to go home and not sleep at night. It's not a horror film it. It's a prequel to a horror film, warning or foretelling of dire situations in the future," Wright said
Even since the documentary first came out, the national debt has grown by $4 trillion. You can watch the 30-minute version of "I.O.U.S.A." online.
It's a disaster movie, but this is about seeing red in the federal budget. "I.O.U.S.A." is making the rounds on college campuses, hoping to help students understand the long term consequences of the national debt.
"Many student and many citizens don't realize the dire financial situation the U.S. may find itself in, in a few years," Professor Robert Wright said.
The film had a powerful impact on its viewers.
"I knew it was a really large issue we were facing, but after watching the movie, it dramatically changed my outlook on it. I realized how big a problem it is, seems impossible to get out of how everything is going now," student Cami Koehn said.
But the professor who brought the movie to Sioux Falls doesn't want it leaving the students hopeless. He wants them to help reverse the trend.
"They can by being politically active and vote for candidates who promise to tighten our nation's ship," Wright said.
"We're coming to the end of college and we're going to be in the real world and have to face the debt and everything going on. We have to take the initiative to change that," student Nick Andreas said.
"It's not something to go home and not sleep at night. It's not a horror film it. It's a prequel to a horror film, warning or foretelling of dire situations in the future," Wright said
Even since the documentary first came out, the national debt has grown by $4 trillion. You can watch the 30-minute version of "I.O.U.S.A." online.
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Low Interest Student Credit Cards Help Build Credit Score; College Students Gain Credit History
When it comes to credit, many college students are usually at one extreme of the spectrum or the other as they near graduation. They either have no credit history or their credit score is in trouble due to high-interest student credit cards that credit card companies often hand out like candy on college campuses.
However, to build a credit score, which is vital seeing as how a good credit score is a valuable asset, a student credit card is a good way to go. However, avoid those “looks good up front offers” from many card companies on campus and seek out a low interest student credit card from a reputable lender who will not only give you a low interest rate, but also realizes that you, the student, want to build a credit history not start post-graduate life in debt.
Many lending institutions will offer credit cards to college students, but there is the matter of looking at the interest rates involved. With so many credit card companies looking to raise credit card interest rates right now due to pending legislation that will prevent them from doing so without warning, among other things, finding a low interest rate on a student credit card will require shopping around and research.
There are numerous lenders who advertise student credit cards and who will offer little or no interest, but unless that great deal has staying power, then keep looking. Most credit card companies will give students just enough time to become comfortable with their card and make a habit of using it, before they raise the interest to a point that is unaffordable.
Find a financial institution or credit card company who will give you a fixed, low interest student credit card that will allow you to afford the payments and thereby build a credit history and good credit score.
Again, key points to remember are research, read the fine print and look at advertised lenders who are going to give you a low interest student credit card for the benefit of your credit not their gain.
Source
However, to build a credit score, which is vital seeing as how a good credit score is a valuable asset, a student credit card is a good way to go. However, avoid those “looks good up front offers” from many card companies on campus and seek out a low interest student credit card from a reputable lender who will not only give you a low interest rate, but also realizes that you, the student, want to build a credit history not start post-graduate life in debt.
Many lending institutions will offer credit cards to college students, but there is the matter of looking at the interest rates involved. With so many credit card companies looking to raise credit card interest rates right now due to pending legislation that will prevent them from doing so without warning, among other things, finding a low interest rate on a student credit card will require shopping around and research.
There are numerous lenders who advertise student credit cards and who will offer little or no interest, but unless that great deal has staying power, then keep looking. Most credit card companies will give students just enough time to become comfortable with their card and make a habit of using it, before they raise the interest to a point that is unaffordable.
Find a financial institution or credit card company who will give you a fixed, low interest student credit card that will allow you to afford the payments and thereby build a credit history and good credit score.
Again, key points to remember are research, read the fine print and look at advertised lenders who are going to give you a low interest student credit card for the benefit of your credit not their gain.
Source
Friday, January 15, 2010
American Student Faces Murder Charges in Italy
Amanda Knox, a 22-year-old American college student, was charged with the murder of her British housemate in Perugia, Italy. According to The New York Times, Knox, a linguistics major from Seattle, has maintained her innocence in the murder case which has drawn relentless media attention, particularly in Italian and British tabloids. Knox has been held in jail since Nov. 2007, soon after Meredith Kercher, 21, was found with her throat slit, semi-naked and wrapped in a duvet, in the house the two students shared. Knox is accused of murdering Kercher with her boyfriend at the time, Rafaelle Sollecito, and a second man. In Oct. 2008, the second man, Rudy Guede, 21, received a 30-year sentence for the crime.    Â
According to CNN, Knox's photo hangs in the police plaza alongside Italy's most infamous mobsters and criminals. Prosecutors declared the case closed within weeks. However, all three of the accused say that they are innocent. Forensic experts say a knife found at Sollecito's house had Kercher's DNA on the tip, and Knox's on the handle. According to the prosecution, Kercher had never been to Sollecito's apartment, and thus would not have come in contact with the knife, showing the knife played a role in the murder. According to The New York Times, the prosecution also says they found DNA evidence of Knox's footprint in Kercher's blood, and several other traces of the two women's intermingled DNA. According to CNN, defense lawyers accuse investigators of "shoddy police work and tampering with the crime scene." Experts testifying for the defense say there is no way the knife could be the murder weapon. Dr. Carlo Torre, a leading forensics expert in Italy, testified that the knife "doesn't match the size or shape of the wounds[…] Sollecito's knife also doesn't match a bloody outline of a knife left on the bedding."According to CNN, Knox's murder trial is entering its final stages, with closing arguments beginning Nov. 20. The jury will begin deliberation on Dec. 4. Currently, there is still no agreement on the key pieces of evidence that prosecutors say convicts her and the defense says clears her.
Curt Knox, Amanda's father said his daughter has cooperated with police and never expected to be implicated. He and Amanda's mother, a Seattle schoolteacher, have taken turns living in Italy. According to Newsweek, Knox told an Italian television audience that his family is in "six-figure debt" in legal and travel bills. He lost his job when Macy's department store in Seattle downsized, and is currently looking for work. The Knox family says they have exercised every available financial resource and now rely on donations to stay afloat.
Furthermore, in the two years since losing their daughter, the Kercher family still has no closure. According to CNN, Kercher's father, John, a journalist who has written about the case for his British newspaper, is writing a book in order to help defray legal costs. The Kerchers have filed a civil suit for $33 million against anyone found guilty of their daughter's murder.
Source
According to CNN, Knox's photo hangs in the police plaza alongside Italy's most infamous mobsters and criminals. Prosecutors declared the case closed within weeks. However, all three of the accused say that they are innocent. Forensic experts say a knife found at Sollecito's house had Kercher's DNA on the tip, and Knox's on the handle. According to the prosecution, Kercher had never been to Sollecito's apartment, and thus would not have come in contact with the knife, showing the knife played a role in the murder. According to The New York Times, the prosecution also says they found DNA evidence of Knox's footprint in Kercher's blood, and several other traces of the two women's intermingled DNA. According to CNN, defense lawyers accuse investigators of "shoddy police work and tampering with the crime scene." Experts testifying for the defense say there is no way the knife could be the murder weapon. Dr. Carlo Torre, a leading forensics expert in Italy, testified that the knife "doesn't match the size or shape of the wounds[…] Sollecito's knife also doesn't match a bloody outline of a knife left on the bedding."According to CNN, Knox's murder trial is entering its final stages, with closing arguments beginning Nov. 20. The jury will begin deliberation on Dec. 4. Currently, there is still no agreement on the key pieces of evidence that prosecutors say convicts her and the defense says clears her.
Curt Knox, Amanda's father said his daughter has cooperated with police and never expected to be implicated. He and Amanda's mother, a Seattle schoolteacher, have taken turns living in Italy. According to Newsweek, Knox told an Italian television audience that his family is in "six-figure debt" in legal and travel bills. He lost his job when Macy's department store in Seattle downsized, and is currently looking for work. The Knox family says they have exercised every available financial resource and now rely on donations to stay afloat.
Furthermore, in the two years since losing their daughter, the Kercher family still has no closure. According to CNN, Kercher's father, John, a journalist who has written about the case for his British newspaper, is writing a book in order to help defray legal costs. The Kerchers have filed a civil suit for $33 million against anyone found guilty of their daughter's murder.
Source
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