Euro

Dexia Crédit Local scored what leads said was a good result on Thursday as it brought a trade at the upper end of its size plans and tightened pricing during another volatile day for eurozone rates. KfW was also out in euros, with a tap, although it appeared to be more of a slow burner.

The European Commission has formally proposed a change in rules to allow sovereign bond-backed securities (SBBS) the same regulatory treatment as eurozone sovereign bonds. But the plan to introduce SBBS is still receiving an, at best, lukewarm reception from market participants.

Unédic played it safe by offering extra new issue concession to traverse a choppy euro market on Wednesday, ending up with a €1bn 15 year deal and a 1bp tightening from guidance. Dexia Crédit Local is out for a euro deal on Thursday, although bankers said the shorter duration trade should mean the volatility will be less of a test.

On Wednesday, US electrical appliance manufacturer Whirlpool became the second investment grade corporate borrower to pull a deal in a week. German energy company Innogy and Whirlpool both found the corporate bond market tough going on Wednesday, despite having employed two-day marketing strategies. Whirlpool, however, took the hardest hit.

The statement that value is what someone is willing to pay has proven true in the corporate bond market in the last week. Large multi-tranche deals paid lower new issue premiums than smaller deals that came later in the week, while one deal failed to find that value point altogether. And then a €2.9bn four-tranche jumbo deal attracted a €4.35bn book, albeit with healthy premiums on all tranches.

Some investors are optimistic that Italy’s borrowing costs can recover following a rapid rise over the last few days as the spending plans of its likely new government came to light. But they also warned that the picture is rapidly changing — as evidenced by the apparent push-back this week by the Italian president against the proposed candidate for prime minister.

The European Investment Bank has printed a new Climate Awareness Bond — its sole euro green bond for 2018 — opting for an aggressive price and falling short of full subscription. A French agency will follow the supranational’s lead, mandating for a deal with the same tenor.

After the Whit Monday holiday in Europe, Deutsche Telekom boldly reopened the corporate bond market. Having seen compatriot Bertelsmann pull a deal on Thursday, Europe’s largest telecoms provider showed no fear when it sold a four-tranche offering.

Delaware-based chemicals group Chemours added to the surge of reverse Yankee issuers with a new euro deal this week, as sources report growing interest from non-European bond investors in the currency.

The pipeline for this week is swelling, according to an SSA syndicate official, but the focus may shift from last week's emphasis on euros to dollars.

European corporate bond market participants are hoping a public holiday on Monday will provide the market with a fillip when it reopens on Tuesday. There was a soft end to the prior week in both primary and secondary.

Investors dumped BTPs this week as far from market-friendly plans emerged from talks this week between the Five Star Movement and the Northern League, which looked set to form a government as GlobalCapital went to press. But there were still some notes of optimism as Italy sold the latest line of its BTP Italia product with little fuss and bankers said BTP yields were still very far from crisis levels.