Deutsche Bank

Volvo joined the growing group of corporate issuers of hybrid capital on Wednesday, when it priced its first hybrid bonds. The deal was popular with investors, generating €7.4bn of orders.

Medtronic grabbed the record for the biggest high grade corporate bond issue of 2014 this week, as investors returned from their Thanksgiving breaks keen to put cash to work in one of the busiest weeks of the year.

The recently quiet subordinated market — excepting Industrial and Commercial Bank of China's thunderous additional tier one (see Asia section) — saw a bit of action this week as UK challenger bank Aldermore privately placed a small additional tier one deal and Société Générale’s insurance subsidiary announced a roadshow for a perpetual bond.

Sterling investors worried about a drop in Gilt supply from the United Kingdom this financial year after Wednesday’s autumn statement received some good news on Thursday, as a new issuer mandated banks on Thursday for a debut bond.

Santos, the Australian upstream oil and gas company, has postponed its planned hybrid bond, after Opec’s decision to maintain production levels amid falling oil prices caused spreads to widen for energy companies.

BMW Finance returned to the New Zealand dollar bond market for the first time in more than three years on Monday with a NZ$100m ($78m) three year deal.

Ethiopia has launched its debut offering at 6.625% after circulating initial price thoughts of 6.75% area on Thursday morning. Bankers say the starting point was generous based on the current trading levels of other African sovereigns.

Chinese property developers are making the most of the bullish sentiment following China’s recent interest rate cut, with Logan Property Holdings and Yuzhou Properties Company pricing bonds this week.

Indian high yield names have been some of the most sought-after credits this year as investor sentiment picked up following the election of pro-reform prime minister Narendra Modi. But that winning streak appears to have come to an end, at least temporarily, after Reliance Communications (RComm) and Lodha Developers pulled the plug on their deals this week, writes Narae Kim.

India’s Hindustan Petroleum Corp has closed its $300m fundraising with commitments worth $225m pouring in from 12 lenders during general syndication. Although it got off to a slow start, the deal gained traction once lenders took into consideration the thinning in pricing for Indian state-owned names after it launched.

Keppel Telecommunications & Transportation is set to price its S$513m ($393.8m) real estate investment trust at the top end of the price range, with institutional books more than comfortably covered, according to bankers.

Another rash of block trades appeared in the European market this evening, though not as many as yesterday’s seven. The crop of four deals was led by a trade of €350m in Belgian nappy maker Ontex, where private equity groups TPG and Goldman Sachs are selling down after its IPO in June.