Italy

Construction company Salini Impregilo was the second Italian borrower in the high yield market on Monday, as a fortnight of no issuance ended.

Italian gaming operator Sisal on Monday started a roadshow for the all-bond funding of its buyout by CVC Capital Partners, in a high yield market still stunned by the Brexit vote.

Two block trades were successfully placed in Europe this week, including a small stake in Italian multi-utility Hera that was snapped up very quickly on Thursday night.

Bookbuilding for the €805m IPO of Enav, the Italian state air traffic control network, will begin on Monday, July 11, the Ministry of Economy and Finance said in a statement late on Thursday evening.

Covered bond secondary market volumes saw a small improvement on Thursday, but with limited supply and continued central bank buying, the market is set to become more technically squeezed over summer.

Monte dei Paschi di Siena (MPS) has become a symbol of Italy’s banking woes, but a private sector salve will not end the lender’s non-performing loan (NPL) problem. A poor performance in the European Banking Authority’s (EBA) 2016 stress tests will only hammer home the size of the mountain left to climb, writes Tyler Davies.

Pirelli, the Italian tyre manufacturer acquired by ChemChina last year, will complete syndication of its loan refinancing this week, according to a lead banker.

Monte dei Paschi di Siena has been at the centre of discussions about a possible new bank investment fund in Italy, after the lender’s huge bad loan problem came to the fore once again this week.

Melrose Industries, the UK company that aims to buy, improve and sell underperforming industrial businesses, will conduct a heavily dilutive £1.655bn rights issue, cheering equity capital markets bankers who had feared months of weak activity, especially in the UK, after the shock of the Brexit referendum.

Unrated Italian health and beauty product maker Artsana has allocated the loan funding for its 60% stake acquisition by Investindustrial, with pricing unaffected by the Brexit vote.

Pier Carlo Padoan, Italy’s finance minister, who has had his days full dealing with the stress in the country’s banking system, has still not officially announced whether Italy will proceed with the IPO of Enav, the country’s air traffic control system.

The latest Obbligazioni Bancarie Garantite issued by Monte dei Paschi di Siena (MPS) was barely changed on Monday after the bank’s share price sank to new record lows in the wake of news that the European Central Bank had requested a sale of its non-performing loan (NPL) stock.