Topic: Municipal Bonds

Fixed-income investors are once again looking sage-like, as the latest eruption in the EU crisis ravages equities.  Two of these funds are up more than 7 percent.

In the investing world, it's easy to think of companies — or individual stocks — rather than businesses as game changers, but a company's proprietary technology casts a big shadow, whether it is the number of outright imitators or the various subcontractors and/or partners.

Funds that own a mix of old and new tech names will allow you to stay well-positioned for the ups and downs of an uncertain economy.

A nearly insatiable appetite for the latest personal electronic devices should enable the information technology sector to maintain its positive momentum for the next year.

It's all about new tech. Though not easily categorized, the group  generally consists of stocks involved in cloud computing, smartphones and software designed to enhance productivity.

If you believe that valuations are stretched, that innovation will not be the productivity-generating cure-all or that consumer demand for high-priced tablets and smartphones will wane, bet against the entire sector by shorting these funds.

Overall state tax revenue increased 3.6 percent in the final quarter of 2011 from the fourth quarter of 2010, according to the New York-based Rockefeller Institute.

High-grade municipal bonds remain a solid investment despite their sometimes-battered public image, according to fixed income expert Alexandra Lebenthal.

The Detroit City Council will see a draft on Thursday of the proposed agreement with the state of Michigan to stabilize the city's finances, a spokeswoman for Council President Charles Pugh said late Wednesday.

Exchange-traded notes, or ETN's are a relatively new type of investment, but growing in popularity. So what are they and how do the work? CNBC explains.

When the city of Stockton, Calif., announced it would skip some bond payments and enter talks with its creditors, the municipal debt world shuddered. But a close look at the muni finance situation across California suggests mass bankruptcies are unlikely.

Pennsylvania's distressed capital city, Harrisburg, will skip $5.3 million of debt payments due next week, the first time the city has defaulted on its general obligation bonds, to ensure there is enough cash to fund vital services.

A federal judge ruled that Jefferson County, Alabama is eligible for Chapter 9 bankruptcy protection and can proceed with its $4.23 billion case, the biggest ever by a U.S. municipality.

United States Gasoline Fund — the only ETF offering exposure to gasoline — is up almost 23 percent in the last three months.  The fund, which has $95 million under management, tracks the prices of futures contracts on unleaded gasoline on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Excessive regulation of financial institutions is squeezing out middle-class consumers who soon will find themselves locked out of the banking system, analyst Meredith Whitney said Wednesday.