CEE Bonds

Books for Russian Railways’ eight year euro green bond had breached the €1.4bn mark by lunchtime on Wednesday, allowing leads to tighten pricing. A banker away from the note said the levels offered looked fair.

Nepi Rockcastle, a Johannesburg- and Amsterdam-listed real estate fund, printed a €500m four year bond on Wednesday. In doing so, it seemed to shake off concerns about the company raised by research firm Viceroy in November, though investors still had questions during the marketing of the bond.

Russian Railways has told investors that it is focusing on an eight year tenor for its euro green bond, with pricing for the benchmark expected "as early as tomorrow." The deal will be the first international green bond from the country.

Investors appear to be split over whether or not Turkey will follow through with its proposed purchase of a Russian S-400 missile system, in the face of likely sanctions from the US if it does.

Investors are clear that president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is once again to blame for another tumultuous week in Turkish assets. The country’s fate in the capital markets is in his hands. Investors have been quick to forgive in the past but their patience is not infinite.

Alpha Bank’s subsidiary in Romania has issued its inaugural covered bond (CB) — the first from the country. The ground-breaking deal represents an important milestone in the development of the Romanian capital market and helps diversify the bank’s funding.

Novolipetsk Steel (NLMK), a Russian steelmaker, is embarking on a roadshow to market a dollar benchmark bond with a five to seven year maturity as issuers and investors brush off the risks of further US sanctions on the country.

The Turkish lira this week tumbled to levels it had not seen since last October’s economic crisis after Turkey’s electoral commission (YSK) annulled the results of Istanbul’s municipal elections that had been won by the opposition. Investors said they are concerned that economic reforms will be put on hold and are worried that higher interest rates will prolong the country’s recession.

Russian Railways is embarking on a roadshow to market its first green bond, which DCM bankers say is the first international green bond from the country. It it entering the market despite a round of US sanctions seeming to be on the way.

Investors are aghast that Turkey’s national election board has cancelled the results of the Istanbul mayoral race, which the country's president Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s ruling party lost in March, and ordered a rerun. The country’s currency and CDS took a hit on Tuesday and is still reeling.

Three new high yield issues were launched into marketing in Europe on Tuesday, including a pay-if-you-can bond, even though the market was a bit weaker after President Donald Trump’s sabre-rattling about raising trade tariffs on China.

Turkey’s national election board has cancelled the results of the Istanbul mayoral race that president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s ruling party lost in March and ordered a rerun. This is widely thought of internationally as a blow to democracy, and in Istanbul citizens have taken to the streets in protest. But Erdoğan’s behaviour has been so unpredictable in the past year that there is hope the rerun in June will be free and fair enough for investors to breathe easy. It seems a bet made more in hope than expectation.