(Reuters) - The sale of debt by states, cities, schools and other issuers in the U.S. municipal bond market totaled $271.8 billion in the first nine months of 2017, a 16 percent drop from the same period in 2016, according to Thomson Reuters data on Monday.
Bank of America Merrill Lynch (NYSE:BAC) was the top underwriter of muni debt so far this year, with 389 deals totaling $43.4 billion, followed by Citi with 386 deals totaling $34.7 billion and J.P. Morgan Securities with 258 deals totaling $24.1 billion.
California was the top issuer, selling nearly $7.2 billion of debt in eight deals. The New York City Transitional Finance Authority came in second with $5.35 billion of debt in 14 deals, followed by the New York State Dormitory Authority with 18 deals totaling nearly $5 billion.