Euro

KfW and Dexia Crédit Local are first out the blocks in what looks set to be a busy euro market for public sector borrowers this week.

Vonovia, Germany’s largest housing association, may have sold the primary market's only investment grade corporate bond on Monday but as its order books showed, conditions remain very receptive for issuance.

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Bank Nederlandse Gemeenten fell victim to a volatile Bund curve and crowded pipeline, falling short of its hopes with its first deal of the year.

Corporate bond market participants show little sign of caring about the end of European quantitative easing and the danger that presents to their market — which has arguably been the sector most affected by the policy. Nigel Owen reports.

Given the success of the corporate bond market's opening deals of the year, it was perhaps surprising that only one issuer came to market on Thursday, but Daimler achieved similar success to the RCI Banque Wednesday deal that it copied.

Ireland opened 2018 with a €4bn print deemed “spectacular” by a banker away from the deal, who said that it was priced flat to the sovereign’s curve.

Investment grade corporate bond market players only had to wait one day for the first new deals of 2018. Renault and BMW both brought new paper to market on Wednesday, selling a total of €2.75bn of bonds with little premium.

The SSA market is off to a typically fast start, with four deals in the market and more expected. However, a newly aggressive tone from members of the European Central Bank governing council could rock the boat.

The lack of volatility combined with the continual grind tighter of spreads of investment grade corporate bonds meant investors in the asset class enjoyed good returns in 2017. Similar conditions look set to prevail at the start of 2018, but investors need to maintain vigilance.

Ireland is set to become the first SSA borrower of 2018 to print a syndicated bond, picking banks for a benchmark deal to be sold on Wednesday. The German state of Lower Saxony will also come to market on Wednesday.