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Rating: A- Amount: Eu250m (fungible with Eu750m issue launched 30/04/02)

Private corporate issuance dropped by $300m this week, but 18 trades were still done from the sector. General Electric Capital was the most active private corporate of the week. Included in its three trades was a Nkr180m note via Deutsche Bank. The trade pays interest of 35bp over three month Nibor and is fungible from the payment date with a Nkr400m issue launched on November 1, 2002. The same borrower also issued a Ck415m three year note and a ¥5bn five year trade.

Volumes were highest between five to seven years this week. Dutch names were responsible for over 50% of business in this maturity range, with yen one of the most popular currencies. Rabobank Ireland's ¥29.2bn issue was the biggest yen trade. The note has a five year tenor and pays a semi-annual coupon of 0.22%. Barclays Capital was the lead dealer. Fellow Dutch borrower, Bank Nederlandse Gemeenten, closed a ¥28bn deal, also through Barclays Capital. The note pays a semi-annual coupon of 0.157%.

Amount: Eu1bn Legal maturity: March 15, 2008

Triple-A issuance dominated volumes this week. But it was also an impressive seven days from single-As which topped issuance from double-A rated borrowers. One of the most prominent single-A deals came from Banco Nacional de Comercio Exterior, which issued the first Mexican peso note in the EuroMTN market since February 2000. The Ps1bn trade was placed by Morgan Stanley and has a three year tenor. The semi-annual interest payment is 11%.

Guarantor: Caja de Ahorros y Monte de Piedad de Córdoba Rating: A (Fitch)

Italian travel company Compagnia Italiana Turismo launched a Eu20m IPO this week, with Abaxbank as lead manager. The IPO, which is the first in Italy since municipal utility ASM Brescia raised Eu330m in July, will comprise 23.6% of the company.

Codelco, the state owned Chilean copper concern, will start its roadshows next week for a 10 year US dollar bond of up to $450m. The deal, led by JP Morgan and Salomon Smith Barney, is likely to be priced tighter than the recent $290m 10 year issue by Enap, the Baa1 Chilean petroleum credit. Enap came to market last week at a spread of 275bp over Treasuries, or about 67bp back of the sovereign yield curve.

Household International's acquisition by HSBC and Vodafone's strong rise in first half core earnings boosted credit markets in the US and Europe, leaving the new issue sector in its best shape for several weeks. Deals by Novartis in euros, Diageo in dollars and HBOS in sterling were the highlights of the week. Novartis' Eu1bn five year bond sold out in a morning and tightened to trade flat to Bunds as Swiss investors clamoured for paper.

Despite dollar swap spreads finding a bid midweek, prices are still at levels not seen for over four years. And with the corporate bond market improving in temper and liquidity, the bias is still on the downside. By yesterday afternoon (Thursday), the five year mid-market was around 48bp and the 10 year was at 49bp. These prices were both off the highs and the lows of the week. After plummeting to new lows last Friday, levels bounced back to a high of around 49bp at five years and 50bp at 10 years on Wednesday afternoon.