Coronavirus

Argentina’s dollar bonds climbed again on Monday after the issuer extended the deadline for a restructuring offer, as a change in tone from the government offered slight hope that an agreement can be reached.

Rubis Terminal looks set to make the first European high yield debut since the coronavirus crisis hit, announcing a new €410m issue to fund a minority investment by I Squared Capital. Business has boomed at the company, which operates bulk liquid storage, thanks to the collapsing oil price.

Equity bankers expect to be busy with more capital raising in the next few weeks as UK corporates prepare for a prolonged period of business interruption after the government laid out plans for a slower reopening of the economy than many had hoped for.

Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank is preparing to issue a global sustainable development bond as early as next week to finance its newly created Crisis Recovery Facility aimed at mitigating the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

European airlines are expected to turn to the equity capital markets soon for financing if they have no recourse to state aid, mirroring their peers on the other side of the Atlantic.

With leveraged companies largely shut out of central bank bond buying and price support schemes, sponsors are mulling government-backed lending schemes in several European countries, as they seek to show other creditors that they have abundant access to liquidity. But the schemes often come with strings attached, which could do nearly as much damage to a sponsor's investment thesis as a restructuring.

Deutsche Bank sold a new tier two on Monday while offering to buy back some of its non-preferred senior debt from investors. The liability management exercise will help the issuer adapt its balance sheet to a new regulatory environment amid Covid-19.

Peijia Medical bagged HK$2.34bn ($302m) from its IPO after winning huge support from institutional and retail investors, according to a source close to the deal.

Monday started on a quiet note for Asia’s bond market, with Indonesia’s Asahan Aluminium (Inalum) the only issuer to venture out. While deal windows are open, bankers say that borrowers are taking it slow.

Chinese hotel company Huazhu Group has returned to the equity-linked market, raising $450m from a bond convertible into its American Depository Shares (ADS).

Indofood CBP Sukses Makmur has sent out a request for proposals for a loan to back its acquisition of instant noodle maker Pinehill Company.

Hong Kong’s citizens are slowly returning to the office as the special administrative region loosens its Covid-19 linked restrictions. But as the world continues to battle the pandemic, bond syndicate teams are continuing to take a flexible approach to work, with some predicting a longer-term future of remote roadshows and hot-desking at banks.