Americas

Toronto-Dominion Bank could become the next Canadian bank to issue a covered bond after it received regulatory approval from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp (CMHC) this week. The sign off comes weeks after Canada set out guidelines on the liquidity coverage ratio.

Royal Bank of Canada opened books on Thursday for its keenly anticipated inaugural covered bond of 2014. The deal builds its euro curve and establishes RBC as the benchmark Canadian issuer in euros. Though wider than its last five year, the 0.75% coupon was 0.5% below its last funding in this duration and shows the impact of the ECB's recent action.

Royal Bank of Canada could be ready to return to the euro covered bond market for the first time this year after emerging from blackout last week. It is one of only two Canadian borrowers that has not issued a euro benchmark this year, while Danske Bank’s research team believes Canadian issuance is set to pick up.

Ministers from the Asean+3 groups are worried that some countries will be vulnerable to a tightening of US monetary policy because of their high levels of public and private debt

The Bank of Montreal (BMO) became the sixth Canadian bank to issue legislative covered bonds when it opened books for its first legislative deal on Tuesday. The transaction was priced at the tight end of the range of Canadian deals and encountered some price sensitivity but was still comfortably oversubscribed.

Bank of Montreal’s (BMO) covered bond programme was recently signed off by the Canadian Mortgage Housing Corporation (CMHC), giving rise to speculation that it could return to the covered bond market after Easter with a newly set up programme and a legally compliant covered bond deal. A still-favourable cross currency swap suggests it could become the fourth Canadian bank to issue in euros this year.

China’s plans to roll out a double-barrel fiscal and monetary stimulus package in the months ahead, in an attempt to stave off a marked slowdown in the world’s second largest economy, could offer a sliver of hope for Latin America’s struggling commodities exporters

The decision by the IDB to site its 2015 annual meetings in South Korea highlights the region’s desire to build on a fast growing trade and business relationship

Leading economists have urged Latin American policymakers not to abandon the economic reforms

Bank of Nova Scotia’s inaugural legislative covered bond is unlikely to offer much room for performance, and isn’t eligible for bank liquidity buffers. At 10bp, the spread is broadly in line with expectations and offers genuine diversification in a hungry market. But at 9bp its secondary market performance is less assured.

National Bank of Canada extended its euro curve by two years and priced its second euro covered bond, a €1bn seven year benchmark, on Tuesday. It looked cheap versus its previous deal, but fair value to where other Canadian transactions were trading on Tuesday.

La Caisse Centrale Desjardins du Quebec (CCDQ) issued its inaugural legislative covered bond on Tuesday, but despite a high quality book, a seemingly attractive spread and a two week hiatus in term benchmark covered bond supply, the issuer could only muster a modest oversubscription.