RBC Capital Markets

The Ontario Teachers’ Finance Trust (OTFT) on Tuesday outdid its dollar debut last year for size, as its second ever international trade clocked in at $2bn.

A rare name will grace the dollar market on Tuesday, coming ahead the minutes of the Federal Open Markets Committee meeting, expected to be released on Wednesday.

BMW sold one of the first two trades in the euro corporate bond market in 2018. It took until April to follow that with a five-tranche offering in the dollar market. It waited less than the week then to make its first visit to the sterling market, but found sterling investors in a similarly stubborn mood to that of euro investors.

Nationwide Building Society issued its first sterling covered bond for two years on Thursday and showed that demand for the product was still strong as it picked up £1bn of five year funding.

Sterling seemed to be the only game in town this week. Two SSA issuers printed in the currency on Wednesday, taking advantage of a favourable basis swap.

Public sector borrowers are having to take a more cautious approach to their dollar issuance, as wide swap spreads and a disconnect between secondaries and primary clearing levels require a touch more concession. But while all agree on the treatment, there are differing views on how long the affliction will last, writes Craig McGlashan.

Guarantor: Federal Republic of Germany

KfW was set to price a $4bn three year global at the tight end of guidance with a comfortably oversubscribed book on Tuesday. But bankers said the concession offered was a sign of a changing pricing dynamic between issuers and investors.

Investors have begun to push back against ever tighter levels in the public sector dollar market, with a deeply sub-Libor trade this week failing to find full subscription. But there was not much concern ahead of next week’s Easter holidays, with some strong funding already raised in the first quarter and the new Federal Reserve chair’s first Federal Open Market Committee meeting passing this week without any great surprises.

The Nordic Investment Bank became the second borrower this week to access the two year part of the curve, taking advantage of a widening in swap spreads.

The Nordic Investment Bank has announced that it will become the second borrower of the week to access the two year dollar market. The first, Kommunalbanken, scooped up $1.25bn on Tuesday.

Funding for leveraged buyouts in the European primary high yield market gained further share of overall issuance this week, as specialty car parts maker LKQ of Chicago sold a €1bn bond for its acquisition of German peer Stahlgruber.