Goldman Sachs

Delight spread through Europe's high yield market on Thursday afternoon, as LeasePlan, the Dutch car finance bank that had ignominiously pulled a €1.55bn LBO financing in February, succeeded in pricing the deal on its second attempt, writes Victor Jimenez.

After a string of strong syndications and auctions from the eurozone periphery during the last seven days, issuers from the region could be set to enjoy even lower yields thanks to the latest monetary stimulus package from the European Central Bank.

Bank Nederlandse Gemeenten brought a 10 year dollar benchmark this week that sparked much debate about whether other issuers would be able to follow in the tenor. Although with a flurry of other trades this week, it is clear that other options are available once next week’s US Federal Reserve meeting is held.

Rating: A1/A+/A

TeamSystem, the Italian business software vendor, has funded the entire €600m of debt for its leveraged buyout by Hellman & Friedman with privately placed bonds — an event some high yield bankers and investors see as impressive, but not necessarily starting a trend.

Israel printed a new 10 year bond and a tap of 2043s on Wednesday with only a small new issue concession and some of the biggest books seen so far this year for a CEEMEA bond.

Bank of China plans to list its aircraft lessor in Hong Kong in a deal that could raise $2bn by mid-year. The move swiftly follows China Development Bank, which has also filed an IPO of its leasing arm.

Berkshire Hathaway drove a pre-ECB meeting rush of issuance on Wednesday as the conglomerate wasted no time following its giant seven tranche bond issued in the US market on Tuesday.

Israel has tightened price guidance on its 2043s tap and new 10 year bond, both in dollars, in the hope of printing the deal later on Wednesday.

Emerging market issuers were busy locking down funding through all avenues this week. The CEEMEA and Latin America bond markets are churning out deals while the main focus in loans is on a jumbo transaction for Saudi Arabia.

European high yield, which has had a dismal 2016 so far, is making another try to break out of its lethargy today, as LeasePlan, the Dutch car finance bank, is relaunching its €1.55bn bond to finance its leveraged buyout.

China Zheshang Bank is gauging demand for a $1.5bn-$1.6bn IPO in Hong Kong and plans to launch the trade next week.