Europe

Italy sold over €7bn of government debt with the highest yields in four years on Thursday, but the outcome was a positive one with Italy receiving good demand, according to bankers.

There was little in the way of emerging market bond issuance this week to set the tone for the usually busy month of September. Although mBank raised €500m of four year money, CEE-focused Atrium European Real Estate had yet to appear with a deal that had been planned for Thursday.

The European Stability Mechanism (ESM) is eyeing up a return to dollars towards the end of the year after completing its third quarter funding with a €4bn dual tranche issue on Wednesday.

Greece’s Danaos Corporation has restructured around $2.2bn of loans, with the shipping container firm slashing its outstanding debt at the expense of giving almost half of the company to lenders.

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The European corporate bond markets got straight on with business after the summer break as nearly €9bn equivalent of new paper was priced in two days this week. A healthy pipeline is ready to follow this week’s issuance as borrowers try to preempt market hazards throughout the remainder of 2018, writes Nigel Owen.

Aerospace and control systems group Honeywell is poised to tap investors in both Europe and the US as levfin markets return to action next week. The firm will look to high yield buyers to help fund the separation of subsidiary Garrett Motion, but a portion of investment grade debt will also be on the table.

Royal Bank of Canada boosted sentiment in the covered bond market on Thursday with a tightly priced €1.5bn seven year. At the same time Société Générale issued a defensively priced and well subscribed €750m five year.

Matteo Andreetto, the CEO of Deutsche Börse index subsidiary STOXX, will formally leave the company on September 30 to join an asset manager.

Czech company Atrium European Real Estate has said it is focusing on a seven year bond. That is the long end of the maturity range that had set for the note on Wednesday. But there are no signs yet of price guidance for the deal, which has already been postponed once.

The European Stability Mechanism has completed its third quarter funding with a €4bn dual tranche issue on Wednesday.

BBVA has hired an ex-Deutsche Bank emerging markets DCM banker for its corporate debt syndicate.