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Boston-based loan manager CypressTree Investment Management is looking to add credit-default swaps on loans to its existing leveraged loan funds, but will hold off until the workings of the LCDS contracts are fleshed out. Richard Omohundro, senior managing director and chairman of the investment committee, said the group wants to see loan contracts follow those of pay-as-you-go synthetic asset-backed securities, in which there is a partial pay option upon a credit event. "We are dabbling our toes in it at the moment, but will be swimming when the market gets going," he said.

The Bank of Thailand is expected to remove constraints to trading onshore digital options for fx and interest-rate products, which have been hindering the market's growth. Following lobbying efforts by international firms that are in regular dialogue with the BOT, derivative officials are hopeful the regulators will remove the constraints in the next few months. "Plain vanilla derivatives continue to attract interest, but rectifying this issue will be a plus," said a derivatives head at an international house in Bangkok. Officials at the BOT in Bangkok declined all comment.

JPMorgan and North Asset Management, a London-based alternative asset manager, are pricing a combination note which references emerging-market and corporate credit risk. The note's AA-rated principal is linked to a senior tranche, while coupon payments are linked to an equity tranche of a credit-default swap portfolio. The majority of the portfolio references global emerging-market credits, both corporate and sovereign, while the remaining is corporate credits.

Beer sales are reportedly up as soccer fans watch their home teams compete in the World Cup.

Delphi Corp.'s $1 billion term loan broke and traded as high as 102 3/4-103 1/8.

Owens Corning bonds tumbled 15 points last week on concerns of a downturn in the housing market.

Investors are wrestling with the structure of the $705 million deal for Rexnord Corp., a covenant-lite deal that might not be as lite as its title suggests.

Wachovia Securities and JPMorgan are expected to be named as the lead banks on a credit backing The Carlyle Group's purchase of Oriental Trading Co. from Brentwood Associates.

This chart, provided by Citigroup Global Markets, tracks bid-ask prices for par credit facilities that trade in the secondary market.

The following charts show the top five advancers and decliners in terms of % moves in the loan, bond and credit default swap markets for the previous week.

-- Mike Sawrie, manager of corporate finance at Cleco Corp., on why it chose BNY Capital Markets as a co-lead arranger on its credit facility.

Traditional long-only credit fund managers have started taking on short exposures in collateralized debt obligations to hedge macro and idiosyncratic credit risks.