Municipal trading shudders awake; Pennsylvania to 'set the tone'; Dasny bringing $482.79 million

By Cristal Cody and Aaron Hochman-Zimmerman

New York, March 9 - The municipal market did little to set a pattern for the week on Monday.

"It's so quiet, it's hard to come up with anything" that drove the market in one particular direction over another, a trader said.

The week still expects to bring a lot of supply and the "good bellwether" is likely to be the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the trader said.

"It will set the tone for the market," he said about the $300 million competitive offering of series 2009 general obligation bonds, which "is going to be a big one."

The bonds are expected to price on Tuesday.

Also on Tuesday, the Treasury plans to begin a week of major debt auctions.

"I'm not sure" the new round of Treasury auctions will have an effect on the market, the trader said, although he admitted that "nine out of 10 people would say 'yes.'"

"I think the new issues are going to tell the story," he said.

Oregon higher education raises $136.17 million

The Oregon State Board of Higher Education priced $136.17 million in G.O. bonds (Aa2/AA/AA) on Friday.

Serial yields ranged from 0.72% to 4.03%. Term bonds priced with yields from 5.04% to 5.08%.

Maturities ranged from 2009 to 2029 with term bonds maturing in 2033, 2034 and 2038.

The bonds came in two tranches of $85.685 million for the series A bonds and $50.485 million for the series B bonds.

Merrill Lynch & Co. acted as lead underwriter for the negotiated bonds.

Proceeds will be used for university projects and to refund outstanding G.O. bonds.

The board of higher education is located in Corvallis.

The deal went "pretty well," said board spokesman James Sinks on Friday.

"There was really strong retail demand and strong institutional demand as well," he said.

Together, "that put us in a good spot," he said.

Dasny brings sales for Rockefeller University, others

The Dormitory Authority of the State of New York has several sales in the works for the weeks ahead.

The authority plans to price $482.79 million in mental health services facilities improvement revenue bonds during the week of March 16.

The sale includes $443.675 million in series 2009A1 and $39.115 million in series 2009B1 bonds.

Goldman, Sachs & Co. is the senior manager of the negotiated sale.

The proceeds will be used to refund the outstanding series 2003F2 mental health service facilities revenue bonds.

Also during the week of March 16, the authority intends to sell $62.33 million revenue bonds, according to a sale calendar.

The series 2009A bonds (A2/A+/A) will be sold for the School District Revenue Bond Financing Program, according to a preliminary official statement.

Roosevelt & Cross, Inc. is the senior manager of the negotiated sale.

The proceeds will be used to refinance bond anticipation notes and to finance facilities and equipment for the Caledonia-Mumford Central School District, Canisteo-Greenwood Central School District, Groton Central School District and City School District of the City of Hudson.

Later in March, the authority expects to price up to $352 million for New York's Rockefeller University during the week of March 23, according to a sale calendar.

The bonds will sold for a partial refunding, according to the authority.

Frederick, Md., to raise funds for airport

Looking ahead, the City of Frederick, Md., plans to price $122.56 million in G.O. public improvement bonds and notes, according to a preliminary official statement.

The $96.9 million series 2009A bonds have serial maturities from 2011 through 2034. The $12.01 million series 2009B bonds have serial maturities from 2010 through 2029, and the $13.65 million series 2009 public improvement notes are due in 2013.

Merrill Lynch is the senior manager of the negotiated sale.

The proceeds will be used to acquire and construct or renovate water and sewer facilities and public buildings and to acquire property for the Frederick Municipal Airport.

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