Credit-default swaps referenced to Hong Kong's Hutchison Whampoa widened last week on the back of a surprise announcement that it was re-tapping the debt market. Sonia Lee, v.p. and Asian credit trader at Credit Lyonnais said last Tuesday five-year credit protection widened to 160-170 basis points from 140-150bps on the back of the news. Volumes in Hutchison protection doubled to a total of USD50 million (notional) a day.
"This caught everyone by surprise," said one credit trader at a bulge bracket house, noting that no one expected the corporate to reenter the market because it placed a USD1.5 billion bond in February.
