Germany

Alstria, the German REIT, sold 15.3m new shares through an accelerated bookbuild, after the close of trading on Monday night, to finance the acquisition of two new properties in Hamburg and Stuttgart and the settlement of a convertible bond.

US lottery and gaming group Scientific Games International sold its first euro bonds this week, in a European high yield market that bankers and investors described as ready and steady for opposite reasons.

Dermapharm Holding, the German pharmaceuticals company, has begun bookbuilding for its Frankfurt IPO with a price range that could value the business at up to €1.6bn.

Public sector borrowers this week set new landmarks in what has already been an exemplary year in dollars, as KfW sold the largest 10 year dollar benchmark in 2.5 years and the Nordic Investment Bank priced the tightest deal versus swaps of 2018 so far. SSA bankers are confident that conditions will hold at both ends of the curve — allowing the possibility of further long end supply and even lower short end spreads.

Guarantor: Federal Republic of Germany

IKB Deutsche Industriebank, an unrated German financial institution, welcomed strong demand and attractive pricing for a tier two deal this week — its first public debt offering since the financial crisis.

Nordex, a German wind turbine manufacturer, began selling a €275m high yield bond this week as it plans to extend its debt maturities by taking out shorter-dated and floating rate Schuldschein paper.

Corporate bond investors were offered 10 year and 11.5 year new issues on Wednesday and combined order books of over €4.4bn showed there is significant demand for longer tenors in this market.

KfW on Wednesday posted a clear sign that the path to 10 year dollars is wide open for public sector borrowers, printing a $3bn global that was the largest trade in the tenor for 2.5 years. That left SSA bankers rubbing their hands and speculating over which borrower might come next.

Telefonica Deutschland has been forced to issue a second round of price guidance on its €150m Schuldschein issue after launching it in early January, after investors' demand was cooler than expected.

Corporate bond investors were treated to a relative feast of issuance on Wednesday following a meagre €850m of supply in the first two days of the week. A trio of higher beta names offered a variety of tenors and spreads for investors to choose from.

Public sector borrowers wrapped up a trio of short end dollar trades on Tuesday, with the tightest issuer able to grind in pricing to the lowest level from an SSA this year and the higher yielding names finding ample demand despite ending up at similar spreads. SSA bankers are confident that the strong conditions will also ring true at the long end for KfW, which has mandated for its first 10 year dollar benchmark in nearly three years.