Middle East
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Saudi Arabia’s National Commercial Bank sold an additional tier one bond this week. Some see the trade from the kingdom’s largest financial institution as a prelude to a bond sale by the sovereign, which could happen next week. -
HSBC has created a dedicated sustainable and transition finance team for the Middle East, North Africa and Turkey, as the region tries to make its economies more sustainable.
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Turkey raised approximately a third of its total financing requirements for the year on Tuesday in a single bond issue. Though the deal included a new issue premium, market participants were impressed with the borrower's execution.
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The Kingdom of Bahrain launched a $2bn triple-tranche bond on Wednesday, the second sovereign trade from the Gulf region this year. Both trades have, somewhat unexpectedly, been done by junk-rated governments.
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Turkey and Bahrain took to primary markets to raise bond funding on Tuesday. But the appearance of two high yield credits has not driven unqualified enthusiasm for all borrowers in that asset class.
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Saudi Arabia’s National Commercial Bank (NCB), the largest financial institution in the kingdom, has mandated banks to arrange a tier one dollar sukuk. The deal may act as a prelude to a potential bond sale by the sovereign, which bankers say could happen as early as this week.
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Saudi Arabia has secured an export financing agreement with Korea’s export credit agency and trade insurance corporation. The deal, which will bolster trade between the two, is the kingdom’s second ECA-backed deal.
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Junk-rated emerging market sovereigns Benin and Oman sold bonds this week, with market participants saying their new issue premiums were minimal. However, bankers think total activity across CEEMEA over the last two weeks has been “underwhelming”.
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Turkish bank Yapi Kredi launched a tier two dollar bond on Thursday, with demand strong enough for bookrunners to attempt to squeeze pricing. But this is an unorthodox start to the year for Turkish bonds with the traditional curtain raiser from the sovereign nowhere to be seen.
