JP Morgan

Two African borrowers are set to hit the road for dollar bonds, extending a run of deals from the continent after a slow start to the year.

Chinese online tutorial platform GSX Techedu is seeking approval for an American Depository Shares (ADS) listing on Nasdaq, as fellow Chinese company DouYu waits for more stable market conditions before commencing pre-marketing for its own $500m ADS offering.

The strength of corporate bond demand, after falls in stockmarkets engendered by the US's hardened stance on trade talks with China, will be tested in the US on Wednesday by a $20bn issue for IBM. In Europe, the test could come on Thursday, since a handful of issuers finished roadshows on Wednesday.

The European Investment Bank enjoyed stellar demand for a $3bn five year deal on Wednesday, with lack of competing supply encouraging investors to turn out in droves, despite the skinny premium on offer.

UniCredit surprised investors with its speed when it sold a €1bn block in FinecoBank on Tuesday — the same day it announced that it would seek to reduce its stake in the online brokerage.

Russian Railways is embarking on a roadshow to market its first green bond, which DCM bankers say is the first international green bond from the country. It it entering the market despite a round of US sanctions seeming to be on the way.

Chinese e-sport streaming platform DouYu is waiting for more stable market conditions before commencing pre-marketing for its $500m IPO of American Depository Shares (ADS).

Three new high yield issues were launched into marketing in Europe on Tuesday, including a pay-if-you-can bond, even though the market was a bit weaker after President Donald Trump’s sabre-rattling about raising trade tariffs on China.

The formal separation of FinecoBank, the Italian online brokerage, from UniCredit has begun with Italy’s biggest bank selling almost half stake to institutional investors via an equity block trade – a strategy UniCredit has used numerous times in the past to shed non-core assets under its CEO Jean-Pierre Mustier.

The European Investment Bank is out with initial price thoughts on a $3bn 2024 bond, offering investors a premium to its bigger five year deal in January.

The European Stability Mechanism offered very little new issue premium on a pair of taps to wipe out its €2.5bn funding needs for the second quarter in one go.

Tencent Holdings has seen an impressive rally in the secondary market for its recently issued dollar bonds, a reflection of strong investor appetite for investment grade supply amid underwhelming issuance volumes in 2019.