Euro

ADO Properties made its debut in the corporate bond market on Thursday, following a roadshow earlier in the week. The €400m seven year deal provided further supply for investors keen to buy higher yielding triple-B rated credits, but the supply line is fading into the summer sun faster than the demand.

For months investors have been complaining about how far pricing moves from initial price thoughts to guidance and again in final pricing in the corporate bond market. On Wednesday, Vodafone responded with a new approach to marketing. The response, however, was not what those involved expected, writes Nigel Owen.

The European Central Bank stayed true to its course at a governing council meeting on Thursday, producing no changes to its policy statement and striking a dovish tone in the subsequent press conference.

ADO Properties made its debut in the corporate bond market on Thursday, following a roadshow earlier in the week. The €400m seven year deal provided further supply for investors keen to buy higher yielding triple-B rated credits, but the supply is drying up in the summer heat faster than the demand.

Italian electricity network operator, Terna, brought its first new issue of 2017 on Wednesday, and benefitted from the current strong demand for triple-B rated bonds. The €1bn 10-year deal had an orderbook of €1.6bn and printed with a new issue premium of 10bp.

Vodafone was the star issuer of last summer, printing jumbo deals which served to kick-start the sterling corporate bond market, which is still going strong. On Wednesday however, they opted for more conservative volumes, printing before the summer shutdown begins. The UK telecoms company also adopted a novel approach to pricing.

KfW printed a €1bn tap of a July 2022 line on Wednesday, sneaking in a deal ahead of the European Central Bank meeting on Thursday.

Bain Capital is calling on the recent demand for lower rated high yield bonds in Europe to fund the acquisition of US cleaning products supplier Diversey Care.

The European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) sold its fifth dual tranche of the year on Tuesday, gaining plaudits as it added €1.5bn to a line that bankers said came under secondary market pressure when launched in February.

Thermo Fisher Scientific put a big dent in the debt it needs to raise to buy Patheon on Tuesday with a €2.6bn four tranche corporate bond offer.

Eurofins Scientific and Thermo Fisher Scientific both held investor update calls on Monday, and both announced deals on Tuesday. The science double bill proved no horror story though, with investors clamouring for unrated Eurofins, even as the four tranche Thermo Fisher deal took more of the limelight.

The European Financial Stability Facility will on Tuesday fill a gap in the 10 year area of its curve and pour some liquidity into the ultra-long end, after hiring banks on Monday for a dual tranche deal. The supranational will also likely be hoping for a repeat of its last dual tranche trade, which took a hefty €6bn chunk out its €14.5bn funding target for the third quarter.