Currencies

Deutsche Hypothekenbank became the second recent German issuer to answer domestic accounts clamouring for paper with a tightly priced tap on Wednesday. But with buyers making enquires on all core names across the curve, opportunistic extensions are an option for a wider range of names.

The stressed cover pool losses of Australia’s covered bonds are worse than those in core Europe, Moody’s first performance overview of the jurisdiction revealed on Tuesday. However, Australia still boasts highly rated issuers and impressive collateral scores.

European covered bond issuers, along with senior unsecured financials and investment grade corporates, were this week presented with excellent funding conditions, despite a ratcheting-up of pressure on Spain and Italy in the early part of the week.

Standard & Poor’s has resolved rating watches on 12 multi-Cédulas and, in a rare move, even upgraded five other programmes. But hedge funds and fast money buyers continue to dominate interest in the multi-issuer asset class, despite some ratings being as high as double-A.

The covered bond market has remained active into late July and syndicate bankers say conditions are still good for further benchmark deals in the wake of ABN Amro’s success this week. With spreads returning to 2010 levels ABN chose to bring forward a jumbo deal originally scheduled for August. But as the macro outlook deteriorates, issuers cannot be sure that the secondary rally will survive the summer break.

Fitch has resolved its rating watch on Italian covered bonds, downgrading four programmes to between double-A and triple-B. This round of cuts was driven solely by new overcollateralisation requirements, but Fitch is bringing in a new methodology and could look at Obbligazioni Bancarie Garantite (OBGs) again soon.

ABN Amro launched a €1.5bn seven year benchmark covered bond on Tuesday, building a book of over €4bn for the first Dutch trade since January. Pricing divided syndicate bankers away from the deal. But with the first jumbo transaction in three weeks ABN proved that the covered market remains primed for supply, and could urge other names to take advantage of a closing window.

Deutsche Pfandbriefbank (Pbb) on Monday returned to the covered bond market for the fourth time this year, tapping an outstanding seven year deal. Secondary demand has sent core spreads tighter across the board, and syndicate bankers expect more issuers to take advantage of an exceptionally attractive primary market.

Moody’s said it is concerned that the rising volume of retained covered bonds is allowing issuers to unilaterally relax standards on their programmes. Italian issuers have lowered collateral requirements and delayed the posting of additional collateral through adverse amendments, said the rating agency. Other jurisdictions, such as Spain, that rely heavily on ECB repo funding are also at risk.

A new type of Cédulas backed by export finance loans is being lined up to help ease funding pressures on Spain’s banks. The Spanish government has set out a legal framework for Cédulas de Internacionalización (CI) which should be repo eligible. However, the market is likely to be a small with limited rating de-linkage to the issuer.

Secondary covered bonds spreads are grinding tighter as buyers faced with negative yields in the sovereign market drive short dated covered yields towards zero. While core jurisdictions wallow in a sea of demand, investors are still averse to peripheral paper, but the wide spread gap could cause Spanish and Italian spreads to bounce back, said bankers.

Italian covered bonds face further cuts despite being given a new rating ceiling of A2 by Moody’s. The rating agency has not yet taken its axe to the issuers, and is expected to cut them all by at least one notch, bringing some OBG’s close to the sub-investment grade border.