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Charter Communications' debt traded into the 99 range from 98 last week on news that the company would issue bonds to pay down its bank debt. An estimated $15 million changed hands. The company has raised $900 million from the sale of junk bonds which it says it will use to increase its business and pay down the debt. Market players report the company's revolver will be paid off. Charter is a cable company based in Scottsdale, Ariz. Calls to Kent Kalkwarf, cfo, were referred to spokeswoman Colleen Haggerty, who declined to comment.

Tulsa, Okla.-based Dollar Thrifty Automotive is refinancing its revolver through current leads, J.P. Morgan, Credit Suisse First Boston and Deutsche Bank. The operator of Dollar Rent-A-Car and Thrifty Rent-A-Car is looking for a $600 million one-year revolver, according to a banker. The spread is LIBOR plus 1% with a 1/4% commitment fee. The bank meeting was held Jan. 10 while Deutsche Bank is the documentation agent and CSFB and Morgan are co-leads and administration and syndication agents, respectively. Calls to Terri Willson Snow, executive director of investor relations, were not returned.

Credit Suisse First Boston and J.P. Morgan are scheduled to launch today syndication of a $220 million refinancing for Aftermarket Technology Corp., a re-manufacturer of transmissions, engines, and automotive electronics for the automotive market. The senior unsecured BB-/Ba3 credit consists of a $50 million five-year revolver, with a spread of LIBOR plus 21/ 4% and a 1/2% commitment fee. There is a $95 million five-year "A" term loan, with the same spread and a $75 million "B" term loan with a six-year tenor. The spread on the institutional tranche is LIBOR plus 3%. Calls to Barry Kohn, cfo of ATC were referred to Mary Ryan, director of investor relations. Ryan explained ATC is undertaking a share offering process and it is a good time to regroup the capital structure. ATC is retiring the 12% notes and Barry [Kohn] wants to reduce the debt level.

J.P. Morgan and Citibank's record debtor-in-possession facility for Enron may not need to be quite so large as $1.5 billion, according to bankers familiar with the situation. Enron is in a good cash position and has not drawn down on the $250 million made available when the bankruptcy filing was made, said one source. Other sources said banks' reluctance to commit is the real reason for the potential reduction, in light of the dwindling asset base and banks concerns over exposure. J.P. Morgan spokesman Adam Castellani declined comment. The DIP is set to be syndicated Jan. 30, once a court ruling is decided. Officials at Enron did not return calls.

Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein has added a layer of management in its credit derivatives group with the addition of Rick Weinstein as global head of credit derivatives. Weinstein said he moved internally and reports to Matteo Mazzocchi, who is also head of securitization and project finance. The credit derivatives group previously reported directly to Mazzocchi.

Volume in the Eurosterling market fell in 2002, in line with all markets but the decline was more tempered than that experienced by its euro counterpart, with fixed rate business decreasing by just £6bn. And the sector remained open for business throughout the year, even in the post-WorldCom summer months when the euro market was closed to all but a handful of corporates. “In tough times, the sterling market remained longer in working mode than the euro market,” says Geert Vinken, global head of syndicate at Barclays Capital. “The volatile credit environment in 2002 demonstrated the depth and maturity of the sterling market in these difficult times to be more aligned to the dollar market than the euro market, reminding us that the euro corporate market has only existed for a few years.”

Equity capital market professionals throughout Asia are busy chasing down mandates for the year ahead and preparing deals for the days and weeks ahead. Issues from SK Corp and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing are the most imminent jumbo deals.

Deutsche Bank is on the road promoting the forthcoming Hong Kong listing of MediaNation to international investors. Meanwhile, BNP Paribas Peregrine (BNPPP) is due to set out on January 14 with Media Partners, another Growth Enterprise Market candidate competing in the same business of outdoor advertising in China. Deutsche is sole lead manager, sole bookrunner and sole global coordinator for sale of 271m MediaNation shares, which if priced at the top end of the indicated range would raise HK$1.03bn, or HK$1.8bn ($152m) including the greenshoe. The valuation range for the international roadshow, now under way and due to end on January 17, is HK$2.60-HK$3.80.

With the Republic of the Philippines having successfully gauged the level of investor demand for Asian debt and spread levels riding at appealingly low levels, bankers are confident that primary issuance will be strong over the coming months. The low interest rate environment has combined with strong regional investor appetite for spreads to tighten in on deals to pre-September 11 levels. The traditional liquidity in the first few weeks of the year has also been bolstered by an increased aversion to equities.

Australia Arranger Westpac Banking Corp has launched a A$160m three year facility for Coates Hire. The borrower is Australia's largest equipment business servicing a variety of industries including manufacturing, construction and engineering.