Goldman Sachs

Europe’s high grade corporate bond market faced one of its biggest tests on Wednesday, with France’s Auchan, which operates in the heavily disrupted retail sector, getting a deal away with one of the larger new issue concessions seen in recent weeks.

Italian-American car company Fiat Chrysler has drawn down on its €6.25bn revolving credit facility to shore up its finances during the Covid-19 pandemic, though the company has left a new bridge loan untouched.

Financial institutions with funding needs that are holding off in anticipation of better issuance conditions are doing it wrong. Waiting until the other side of earnings season to bring deals will likely prove a mistake.

Lenovo Group took a cautious approach to its $650m bond issuance last Friday, opting for size instead of price and offering investors a hefty premium for its deal.

The euro high grade corporate bond market was noticeably calmer this week, but deals for issuers as diverse as Telstra, American Honda, La Poste and Givaudan saw chunky books and shrinking new issue premiums.

US banks this week reported stellar returns from trading and underwriting in the first quarter, even as the bottom line was hit by gigantic writedowns and reserves for credit losses, as the economic and financial disruption from the coronavirus crisis took its toll.

Informa, the UK publishing and events company, has taken the decision to suspend its dividend and raise £1bn of fresh equity after the Covid-19 pandemic caused hundreds of its conferences to be postponed.

Telstra, the Australian telecoms company, printed euro denominated debt through its curve on Thursday, but there is growing concern among bankers that the good times will not last in the bond markets.

Saudi Arabia followed neighbours Abu Dhabi and Qatar to the international bond markets on Wednesday, achieving a $7bn deal that was nearly eight times subscribed.

US banks ramped up reserves for credit losses, expanded credit lines and enjoyed bumper trading and debt underwriting volumes in the first quarter, according to results released on Tuesday and Wednesday.

The Carlyle Group has raised Rp7.6bn ($100m) after selling most of its stake in Indian diagnostic laboratory chain Metropolis Healthcare, according to a source close to the deal.

Malaysia's Petroliam Nasional and China's Lenovo Group set the stage for new dollar deals on Tuesday, taking advantage of a rally in Asian bonds and improved investor sentiment despite the growing impact of the Covid-19 coronavirus.