Loans and High Yield

The response to Tata Motors' £640m ($839m) refinancing has been phenomenal, with the loan generating commitments exceeding $1bn, said bankers close to the situation.

India’s IL&FS Transportation Networks is laying the groundwork for the first offshore renminbi bond of the year, mandating banks on Friday.

Chinese state-owned coal miner Yankuang Group Company is making a swift comeback to the debt market after its debut just over a month ago, looking to add to its existing three year. Guangzhou R&F Properties Co, meanwhile, sold a quiet $100m tap on Thursday at a slight discount to the original notes.

Property developer Lai Fung Holdings will kick off a roadshow next week for a new dollar bond.

Philippine company International Container Terminal Services (ICTSI) will meet investors in Asia and Europe next week for a senior guaranteed perpetual bond.

The visible deal pipeline of the European high yield bond market is expected to end the week empty, but the list of potential new borrowers keeps growing. Speciality paper manufacturer Fedrigoni is the latest.

Asia’s leveraged finance bankers started the year hopeful that volumes would pick up. However, US regulators have already undermined those hopes, blocking Ant Financial’s high-profile acquisition of local firm MoneyGram, calling into question the chances of further outbound deals from China. Shruti Chaturvedi reports.

China’s Yingde Gases Group Co has mandated banks for its first dollar bond sale in more than three years.

Economic conditions are ripe for the mergers and acquisitions that drive capital markets. Into this mix comes a potential US tax reform more radical than any for decades. This is bound to tilt boardroom decisions about strategy — if nothing else, US CEOs could suddenly have more cash back at HQ than they know what to do with. Jon Hay and Sam Kerr report.

Refresco’s $1.25bn acquisition of Cott’s drinks bottling business raises monopoly concerns, the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said this week. But market sources see a quick fix ahead.

Citi finished 2017 in its highest ever position in the EMEA league tables, leading from the front in ECM. David Rothnie asks whether it can topple JP Morgan.

The lack of volatility combined with the continual grind tighter of spreads of investment grade corporate bonds meant investors in the asset class enjoyed good returns in 2017. Similar conditions look set to prevail at the start of 2018, but investors need to maintain vigilance.