Santander

Latin America bond bankers put on brave faces after Petrobras’ return to bond markets soured when its new 10 year traded down as much as five points just two days after pricing. Oliver West reports.

Caja Rural de Castilla-La Mancha this week issued the first Cédulas in more than two months and swept aside concerns that peripheral issuers would need to pay lavish new issue concessions.

Latin American DCM bankers drew positive conclusions from Petrobras’ first international bond in nearly a year as the Brazilian state oil giant raised more than twice what it needed to for a liability management exercise.

After the extremes of recent weeks, with enormous order books and sometimes negative new issue premiums, Europe’s corporate bond market has reached a steadier cruising speed this week.

Betting house William Hill this week was alone in the European high yield market for a potential issue of £300m of unsecured notes, with the UK’s European Union membership referendum an unhelpful backdrop.

Spanish property developer Metrovacesa on Friday printed a €700m deal, winning a healthy order book that proved the European corporate bond market still has legs despite heavy supply.

Spain made a storming entrance to the 50 year benchmark club this week, lending weight to the possibility that the tenor could become a more common maturity as eurozone rates scrape along at record low levels.

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FIG syndicate desks were looking forward to a pick-up in primary market activity this week, after two insurers hit screens and the bank capital pipeline also grew.

Water management provider Suez Environnement on Thursday launched the only deal of the day, a €500m note that printed with a small new issue premium.

William Hill, the UK bookmaker, will begin a roadshow on Friday for its benchmark sterling bond, indicating an estimated deal size of between £250m and £300m.

US biopharmaceutical firm Johnson & Johnson on Wednesday issued a four tranche bond, including 19 year notes, amid much competition in a market that absorbed 17 deals this week.