Saturday, February 25, 2012

LIU STATEMENT ON $153 MILLION SAVINGS FROM SUCCESSFUL NYC BOND REFINANCING

Here is a vote of confidence for NYC. Fortunately, the world sees our city as a safe haven for its capital and our Comptroller is capable enough to take advantage of the low interest rates presently available. Kudos to Liu!

I would have thought NYC had a AAA credit rating, but as stated below were short the third "A" from all three credit ratings services mentioned.

Gregory

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NEW YORK, NY – City Comptroller John C. Liu made the following statement about the General Obligation bonds that were refinanced this week.

“Challenging times require smart government. By issuing $1.03 billion of General Obligation refunding bonds at low market rates, the City has saved $153 million over the life of the bonds,” Comptroller Liu said. “Broad-based and strong demand produced larger than anticipated savings. Investors continue to realize the value that New York City bonds have to offer.

“Refinancings help drive down the City’s borrowing costs for building schools and repaving roads among other capital projects, thereby saving taxpayers money. In the last two years, the Comptroller’s office working with the City’s Office of Management and Budget executed refinancings that have produced over $700 million in total savings.”

BACKGROUND:

New York City announced today the successful sale of $1.03 billion of tax-exempt refunding General Obligation (G.O.) bonds, an increase of over $200 million from the previously announced $800 million of bonds expected to be sold.

Yields on the bonds ranged from 0.10% in 2012 to 3.25% in 2032.

The refunding produced approximately $139 million of budget savings for the City in fiscal year 2013, and $153 million over the life of the bonds.

The ratings for New York City General Obligation Bonds are Aa2 from Moody’s Investors Service, AA from Standard & Poor’s and AA from Fitch Ratings.

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