Europe

UK electricity distributor Western Power Distribution returned to the corporate bond market on Tuesday for its regular annual fourth quarter outing, but this time had to accept a significant new issue premium as it raised £350m.

Despite huge demand for shares in the IPO of Knorr-Bremse, its sellers have chosen to be conservative in setting the revised range in the listing, in the hopes of bolstering a positive first day of trading in uncertain markets.

German car manufacturer Volkswagen livened up investors’ Tuesday with a new triple-tranche deal.

Core European covered bond spreads and non-eurozone deals look well placed to weather volatility over the next few weeks and potentially through to year end depending on supply, market makers believe. Even in the eurozone periphery, the situation is considered orderly.

Aegon announced a mandate for a restricted tier one (RT1) deal on Tuesday, undeterred by recently pulled tier one trades or the prospect of paying tax on its coupons.

Slovakia’s Slovenská sporiteľňa (SLSP) has issued the first Aaa rated Slovakian covered bond paving the way for the country's first publicly syndicated euro benchmark. UniCredit has also privately placed a €500m Slovak covered bond.

The Bank of England is to postpone the launch of its second biennial exploratory scenario, it said on Tuesday, because both the supervisor, and the firms it monitors, will need to focus resources on dealing with the UK’s departure from the EU instead.

One of Europe’s major electricity producers, Portugal’s EDP sold its first green bond on Tuesday, aligning its fundraising with the company’s green principles.

The Bank of England, the International Swaps and Derivatives Association and a number of other industry trade bodies from across Europe have piled pressure on the European Union to deal with the risks of a disorderly Brexit for derivatives contracts.

Shares in Westwing Group, the German home and living e-commerce platform, fell as much as 11.4% in trading on Tuesday morning after the company priced its €114m IPO at the mid-point of its range.

Russia’s Ural Mining and Metallurgical Company (UMMC) has signed its debut syndicated loan, as lenders remain resolute that sanctions have not made the country a no-go zone.

Santander Consumer Finance entered the Swiss market on Monday, selling Sfr150m ($150.8m) four year Swiss franc bonds via Credit Suisse.