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GlobalCapital has launched its poll to determine the 2019 winners of its Sustainable and Responsible Capital Markets Awards. Market participants are invited to participate.

Schuldschein borrowers, with the help of arranging banks, are for the first time offering different pricing ranges on issues of fixed and floating rates, as the market tries to find ways of dealing with the prolonged period of negative interest rates.

The City of London Corporation, via its endowment fund The City’s Cash, has launched first US private placements (PP), roadshowing the prospective notes this week and next. The funds will be partly used to finance the consolidation of the Billingsgate, Smithfield and Spitalfields wholesale food markets at a new site in Dagenham, Essex.

Can a bank ever really be certain about its interpretation of the perfect capital structure?

Remember gentlemen, hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.

China’s tighter grip on offshore bonds from local government financing vehicles (LGFVs) has given a short-term boost to issuance volume in the past few weeks. But although the deal flow from the sector is set to slow down, concerns over LGFV risks are far from over.

Buzzi Unicem has returned to the Schuldschein market, looking for at least €100m of debt in four maturities. The pricing levels are tighter than on the Italian cement and concrete group’s debut Schuldschein in 2017. Bankers thought this was thanks to investors' growing familiarity with the borrower, as well as a rating upgrade from Standard & Poor's.

London’s most recent IPO issuers can exhale with relief after pricing their deals just before an increasingly turbulent Conservative leadership contest and the increasing likelihood of a disorderly Brexit spooked investors.

Porsche AG, maker of Porsche sports cars, has returned to the Schuldschein market, on the hunt for funds for research and development into electric cars, among other green projects.

CNP Assurances is planning to offer investors a rare green bond from the insurance sector, and the intended use of proceeds looks more worthy than some previous efforts — for example, from QBE Insurance Group. However, issuing a sustainability bond is of less relevance for insurers’ environmental, social and governance (ESG) priorities than it is for other types of issuer.

In this round-up, the CBIRC head condemns US trade policy, China's premier Li Keqiang says country is open for business, the HKMA announces enhanced currency conversion arrangement under stock connect, and FTSE Russell officially includes China A-shares.

In this round-up, China’s holdings of US treasuries reached the lowest level in two years, the Ministry of Commerce (MoC) promised to unveil foreign investment negative lists in 10 days, and Bank of China (UK) can now provide clearing services in London.