Europe
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Nobody could say ECB president Christine Lagarde did not deliver. The central bank promised on Thursday that the pace of buying for its Pandemic Emergency Purchase Programme would be “significantly increased” for the next quarter. Bond market participants were relieved, with one saying it has been “built on egg shells”, writes Lewis McLellan. -
Environmentalists were outraged on Thursday to learn from a leaked document that the European Commission is considering the option of including some gas power stations in its Taxonomy of Sustainable Economic Activities.
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A flurry of Swiss franc issuance dusted the market this week, as domestic and foreign borrowers entered a more settled market.
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The Russian IPO market has a strong pipeline of listings being prepared for execution over the rest of the year. However, getting deals done could grow much harder with the threat of fresh sanctions against the country from a new US president threatening to derail the market.
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The European Union finally arrived with its second Support to mitigate Unemployment Risks in an Emergency (SURE) transaction of the year on Tuesday, two weeks after it sent banks a request for proposals (RFP).
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NRW.Bank became the latest non-UK public sector borrower to hit the sterling market this week, taking advantage of the attractive funding cost in the currency versus euros and US dollars.
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The Climate Bonds Initiative has said the evidence for price benefits of green bonds is becoming "increasingly visible". Though proof of a pricing advantage in covered bonds is limited, it was on display this week when Crédit Agricole Italia issued is first green covered bond and more generally, the product attracts a wider investor base.
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Bank issuers are increasingly interested in the idea of selling tier two bonds in green formats. But green additional tier ones are unlikely to bloom.
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Increased turbulence in global equity markets has changed the way block trades are conducted in Europe, with smaller transactions coming to market in order to protect the price for sellers.
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The European Central Bank has delivered its latest monetary policy decision, promising an increase to the pace of its Pandemic Emergency Purchase Programme (Pepp). Market participants were eager to see a tangible demonstration of support in light of the harsh sell-off of the last month.
