O'Hare airport bond issue unmarred by Chicago's fiscal crisis

Chicago

EVEN as Chicago confronts a fiscal crisis, investors are looking beyond its turbulent finances with anticipation toward the city's biggest bond deal ever.

Chicago is selling US$2 billion of securities for O'Hare International Airport, backed by revenue from the nation's busiest airport and sheltered from the mounting pension obligations squeezing the third-most populous US city. Fund managers at Wells Fargo Asset Management and Conning say any yield premium resulting from the city's tainted reputation is likely a buying opportunity given the airport's rising traffic and hub status.

"Just looking at the nuts and bolts of the deal, it's been pretty impressive what's going on there," said Paul Mansour, head of municipal research at Hartford, Connecticut-based Co…