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Scotiabank has dropped UBS Warburg (UBS) as a dealer from its $8 billion Euro-MTN programme and replaced it with ABN Amro. UBS has led one trade for the issuer since the beginning of 2000, according to MTNWare.

United Utilities has added three dealers to its recently updated $1.5 billion Euro-CP shelf. The added houses are Deutsche Bank (also arranger), Citibank and Royal Bank of Scotland.

Institutional investors may have to adopt hedge fund trading strategies if they want to make gains in 2002, according to stock market data from the last two months. As stock markets turn the corner into recovery, investors are expected to be hesitant about the prospects for growth, unwilling to see the market rise too quickly.

Over $6,877.96 million was raised in US dollar. Freddie Mac was responsible for the majority of this volume. It launched a $6 billion two-year deal off its unlimited global debt programme. The issuer already has $184 billion outstanding off the shelf. Republic of Austria closed a one-year $220 million note via Deutsche Bank, which was swapped into euro. KfW International Finance issued a one-call $10 million 10-year trade via Tokyo Mitsubishi International. The trade is callable after two years and until the call it pays a coupon semi-annually linked to 6m $Libor +65pbs. If the note is not called, it will pay a fixed coupon of 7.5% annually.

Globals * Bear Stearns Co Inc

Ten trades were issued in US dollar, the largest of which came from European Investment Bank. The triple-A-rated supranational closed a $200 million five-year uridashi deal via Daiwa Securities. The note pays a fixed rate of interest at 4.75% semi-annually. It was aimed at retail investors. Landesbank Sachsen issued a $35 million one-year trade via UBS Warburg. The note pays a fixed coupon of 2.39% at maturity. Royal Bank of Scotland closed a $5 million two-year note. The note is self-led and pays a coupon at redemption that is equity-linked to the S&P500 index. KfW International Finance announced a $22 million 10-year note, although the deal is open until January 16 and could be increased. It is due to settle on January 28.

Over $2.73 billion was raised in US dollar off 15 trades and Bank Nederlandse Gemeenten issued a substantial part of this with its $1.5 billion fixed rate public deal. The five-year note is not syndicated and the joint-lead managers are ABN Amro, HSBC and UBS Warburg. Council of Europe Development Bank also went for volume with a $750 million five-year public deal. The trade is non-syndicated and pays a fixed rate of 4.875% annually. The joint-lead managers are Dresdner Bank and BNP Paribas. Den norske Bank issued a $400 million trade via Salomon Smith Barney. The five-year note pays a floating rate of 3m $Libor +15 basis points. Other smaller trades came from Unibanco - Uniao de Bancos Brasileiros (two six-month notes for $1.27 million and $2.80 million); Commonwealth Bank of Australia (a three-year $14.10 million note and a five-year $5 million note); and Banque et Caisse d'Epargne de l'Etat Luxembourg (with a seven-year $5.50 million range accrual note).

Over $100 million was traded in US dollar off nine notes. HSBC Investment and Barclays Bank were at the short end with 34-day trades of $10 million and $20 million. In the four- and five-year sector were Development Bank of Singapore with a $4 million trade; UBS (Jersey) with a $20 million note; World Bank with a $10 million; and also Royal Bank of Scotland with a $10 million deal that goes out to February 2007. Going out slightly further were Banque et Caisse d'Epargne de l'Etat Luxembourg with a $7 million seven-year trade and CDC ISIX Capital Markets with a $10 million 10-year note.

* Axa SA Rating: AA- (Fitch)

JP Morgan and UBS Warburg are gearing up to launch a $150m-$200m three to five year deal for Russian mobile company VimpelCom in February, following the successful $250m three year deal for rival operator Mobile TeleSystems (MTS) in December. The leads have not decided yet whether to issue in dollars or euros, or whether to go for a 144A or a registered rights documentation. MTS took the registered rights path for its bond via Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein and ING Barings.

Volkswagen has upped the limit off its euro3 billion ($2.67 billion) debt issuance programme to euro10 billion. Barclays Capital, BNP Paribas and Morgan Stanley have been added as dealers. Goldman Sachs and Lehman Brothers have been dropped. Volkwagen Financial Services has increased the size of its programme from euro5 billion to euro10 billion. Goldman Sachs and Royal Bank of Scotland were dropped as dealers and HypoVereinsbank and Schroder Salomon Smith Barney were added to the dealer panel.

Deutsche Bank and Goldman Sachs became the victims of their own ambition as they failed to complete the sale of Eu3.3bn of Vivendi Universal's stock on Monday. This is not the auspicious start to 2002 that the European equity capital markets would have wanted. After a disastrous 2001, ECM bankers had been hoping that the new year would see a turnaround in their fortunes. But the Vivendi issue only serves to highlight the fact that investors remain extremely cautious.