Africa Bonds

The bookrunner league tables for international sukuk are skewed by huge lead manager line ups and low overall volumes and need to be taken with a pinch of salt.

The bookrunner league tables for international sukuk are skewed by huge lead manager line ups and low overall volumes and need to be taken with a pinch of salt.

Afren, the London-listed, Africa-focused oil exploration company, has heralded its initial agreement with a group of lenders and bondholders as the only way to avoid default.

Sappi, the Austrian-South African paper maker, on Thursday priced its €450m of senior secured bonds inside price guidance, into a high yield market with solid demand this week.

Pan-emerging markets telecoms and media group Millicom sold a $500m 10 year non-call five note on Tuesday, tightening pricing by 25bp from initial price thoughts despite another day of torrid secondary markets in Latin America.

Austrian-South African paper maker Sappi will begin on Wednesday in London the roadshow for its €450m of senior secured notes.

Struggling Afren is in talks with bondholders to restructure its Eurobonds due 2016. The company missed a coupon payment on its February 2016s earlier this month.

Ivory Coast paid a lower new issue premium than expected to re-open the sub-Saharan sovereign bond market this week, sparking debate on the implications for other African borrowers.

Ivory Coast bagged over $4bn of orders for its new Eurobond on Tuesday, with investors taking comfort in the amortising structure which is becoming a feature of the African sovereign market.

The Republic of Niger has signed an agreement with the Islamic Development of the Private Sector (ICD) to set up a CFA150bn ($259m) sukuk programme.

Ivory Coast is marketing its new 12 year amortising note at 6.875%, a level that offers around a 37.5bp new issue premium.

Angola may have progressed to printing bonds in the public market, but the lure of opaque African private placements will continue to tempt others.