Germany

K+S, the German potash processor and mining group, launched on Thursday its first bond since losing its investment grade ratings.

The European Commission on Wednesday struck down the all-but-dead proposed merger of the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) and Deutsche Börse.

S&P Global Ratings raised German banks’ additional loss-absorbing capacity (ALAC) ratios this week, after changing its ratings approach in light of Germany’s decision to subordinate certain senior debt instruments in resolution.

Hochtief, the German construction firm, has raised €500m with a Schuldschein issue, more than triple the €150m it initially sought, as domestic and international investors welcomed a favourite issuer back to the market.

Shares in Aumann, the German maker of wire enamelling and electric motors for cars, rose 20% above its IPO price on Friday after making its debut on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, giving it a market cap of €704m.

German auto parts maker Adler Pelzer Group drove into a European high yield bond market already loaded with offerings from other six borrowers on Wednesday, but it stood out as a rare chance for investors to buy a single-B rated bond.

Volkswagen stormed back into bonds on Thursday for the first time since its emissions test cheating scandal 18 months ago. And the €8bn blowout that paid investors a chunky premium to allay their fears about the company is just the start of the firm’s market rehabilitation, writes Michael Turner.

A higher than expected UK inflation rate led to a sell-off in Gilts this week, a move that may put an end to what has been a remarkable run of traffic in sterling SSA bond issuance.

Volkswagen is looking to follow up Thursday’s jumbo euro bond sale with outings in the dollar and hybrid bond markets as soon as the second quarter, the company’s head of group treasury told GlobalCapital.

The European Investment Bank and KfW on Wednesday tapped the long end amid an otherwise quiet euro market.

With just over three weeks to go until Easter, the latest wave of IPOs in EMEA is progressing well. One deal was priced on Tuesday and bookbuilds have begun for two more.

There were four equity block trades in EMEA on Tuesday evening, the largest of which was a capital increase by Carl Zeiss Meditec, the German medical technology company.