Middle East

Gulf schools operator Gems Education is following its $250m loan financing in April with another deal for $500m which will be syndicated soon, according to bankers.

Zain Group of Kuwait is refinancing a $500m corporate loan, syndication of which is due to close soon, according to a banker close to the deal.

Remarkable resilience in the face of an uncertain future was the tale of emerging market bond prices on Wednesday as Donald Trump won the presidential election in the US, much to the surprise of EM traders themselves, who expected the risk aversion to last much longer. But the outlook for EM bonds under a Trump presidency is far from rosy. Latin America has been the clear underperformer so far but more pain is expected.

Investor support for Turkey has proved remarkably resilient this year. A coup attempt and ensuing state of emergency, and two downgrades to junk, did little to shake support, but Turkey’s luck is running out as the attention turns to deteriorating economic indicators from the region.

Bank Muscat is preparing to refinance a $600m loan maturing in April next year and will likely aim to raise the same amount with its new facility, said one banker.

Turkish bonds sold off some 30bp on Friday after President Recep Erdogan’s crackdown on the country’s pro-Kurdish opposition escalated with two high profile arrests. The widening is likely to halt Turkish bond issuance for this year, according to an EM DCM banker focused on the region.

Etihad Airways will begin investor meetings on a reverse enquiry for an intermediate sukuk, the successful placement of which will result in the borrower’s first ever standalone bond.

State-owned Abu Dhabi banks ADCB and NBAD have taken a very different approach to the loan market, with one bank paying up to bring in new lenders and the other demanding tight relationship pricing.

Citi has promoted its Turkey CEO into a broader role of EMEA head of non-presence countries.

IBA — HSBC Dubai — Profi

The Dubai Gold and Commodities Exchange (DGCX) has announced plans to launch a renminbi futures contract, with Gaurang Desai, CEO of the exchange, telling GlobalRMB the contract has already received regulatory approval.

The government of Dubai has picked HSBC as financial advisor for its $3bn fundraising to expand its international airports.