Europe
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Equity derivatives strategists are bullish on equities in the short term as European business confidence is high and US markets bask in the afterglow of tax reform passed by President Donald Trump. But questions remain over how long the US equity bull run can continue, with some experts encouraging more cautious long positions this year. -
Bayer took advantage of the robust conditions in Europe’s market for equity block trades on Wednesday night with another jumbo sale of stock in Covestro, the former plastics division it span off in 2015.
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The sterling corporate bond market had a very strong year in 2017. So it is somewhat surprising, especially given the strength of the euro corporate bond market, that the scorecard in the sterling market remains blank. However, there have been signs of life with a pair of roadshows announced this week.
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German supermarket group REWE International has become the first company to launch a Schuldschein deal at benchmark size this year, a sign that German blue chips may be busy in the market this year.
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Vonovia, Germany’s largest housing association, may have issued the only investment grade corporate bond on Monday but, as its order books showed, conditions remained very receptive for issuance.
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Anheuser-Busch InBev’s last visit to the euro bond market was to help finance its $107bn acquisition of SAB Miller in 2016 and on Tuesday the world’s largest brewer returned with a smaller offering that investors were still thirsty for.
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French toll road operator Autoroutes du Sud de la France on Wednesday followed the path its compatriot Orange had taken on Tuesday by issuing a €1bn 12 year bond, while Deutsche Bahn and Ren Finance on Thursday opted for the 10 year area of the curve. Investors appear keen to put their money to work at the longer end of the corporate bond curve.
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Italian auto finance bank FCA Bank was in the market on Wednesday with its first benchmark floating rate note, which was priced with no new issue premium.
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Italian electricity supplier Enel sold its second green bond on Tuesday, repeating the timing of its first such offering in 2017, which it also sold in the second week of the year. The latest deal was the same size, but priced tighter and won a larger order book, despite having a longer maturity.
