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The yen market is steady at the moment, with around 30 trades being announced each day. On Friday 29 were announced, including two from Mitsubishi Motors Credit of America, a Ba3-rated borrower, suggesting that investors are regaining their confidence. The two notes were for ¥2.5 billion ($20.99 million) and ¥1 billion and both go out to August 2024. They have respective final coupons of 0.75% and 0.5%. At the other end of the credit spectrum, KfW International Finance announced a ¥1.1 billion 15-year note. Merrill Lynch was the bookrunner and the note has a fixed coupon of 3% for the first year, and then becomes a power reverse dual currency (PRDC) Bermuda callable note, linked to US dollar - yen. European Investment was another triple-A announcing trades. Its 22nd yen note of 2001 was a ¥1 billion trade led by Nomura. It also has a PRDC Bermuda callable structure, and goes out to October 2031. International Finance Corp and CDC IXIS Capital Markets were the other triple-As doing deals on Friday. It announced a ¥1 billion 20-year note and a ¥1.2 billion 30-year note respectively. There were some bigger trades being closed too. GMAC Australia (Finance) did two ¥30 billion one-year trades and a ¥15 billion one-year trade. And Bank of Western Australia announced a ¥21 billion trade that matures in October next year. It is the second-biggest yen note the issuer has done this year. Hypo Alpe-Adria Bank went for a smaller trade. It was a ¥500 million deal with Credit Lyonnais as bookrunner, and goes out to October 2016. It has a fixed coupon of 2% for the first year, then turns into a CMS-linked structure, defined by the 20-year yen mid-market rate minus the two-year yen mid-market rate. It is callable on April 26 next year and at every coupon payment date thereafter. Other double-A issuers included Societe Generale Acceptance, with a ¥4.5 billion five-year note and a ¥10 billion five-year note, and Caixa Geral de Depositos (Paris), with a ¥3 billion 10-year note. It is the issuers 27th yen note of the year, most of which have been currency-linked trades.

The yen market dipped on Monday. Only 20 deals were closed in yen but trading was down in all currencies with only 47 deals closed. Salomon Smith Barney (Salomon) was extremely busy in the currency. It was lead manager on nine of the deals closed in yen. Its longest-dated deals were for Svensk Exportkredit (SEK) and International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD). SEK went out 30 years with its ¥500 million ($4.16 million) and ¥700 million trades. Both trades will be issued on October 10 2001. Salomon also led a 20-year ¥1.3 billion note for IBRD that will be issued on October 11 2001. At the short end Salomon led two two-year notes for GMAC due to be settled today: a ¥6 billion note and a ¥12.3 billion issue. GMAC also saw opportunities in the one-year sector and issued a ¥23 billion note that pays a single final coupon of 1% that will be issued on October 18 2001. Tokyo Mitsubishi also stayed at the short end. It closed a ¥428 million one-year note that pays a final coupon of 0.21% and a ¥500 million trade that pays a final coupon of 0.2%. Both trades will be issued on October 18 2001. Exportfinans went out 10 years with its ¥5 billion note that will be issued on October 25 2001. The note was led by Goldman Sachs.

Caixa Catalunya signed a euro1 billion ($910.56 million) Euro-MTN programme on October 3, with Deutsche Bank as arranger. The borrower will look at traditional and innovative forms of trades in the public and private markets, but it will wait until next year to issue the first note off the facility. A treasury official, at Caixa Catalunya, says: "We propose to issue a debut bond during the first quarter of 2002 and Deutsche Bank has been appointed as lead manager and sole bookrunner. We will review and monitor market openings to execute private placements although we expect the prime feedback will come from our dealer group." The treasury official adds: "The debt facility was set up principally to diversify our funding source away from the domestic market and to develop and widen our investor base both in Europe and other geographic regions." The official explains the choice of dealer panel: "We felt that Deutsche Bank would add more value both in terms of programme arrangership skills and dealer performance." He adds: "There are no plans to commence a roadshow until we are ready to issue in the public market." The dealer panel is ABN Amro, Caixa d'Estalviz de Catalunya (also the programme's guarantor), Deutsche Bank, Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein, JPMorgan, Merrill Lynch and Schroder Salomon Smith Barney.

Market report Compiled by Richard Favis, RBC DS Global Markets, Johannesburg.

The IPO of the Japanese unit of US coffee shop chain Starbucks Corp attracted overwhelming attention from investors and the media in Japan this week, despite the deal's relatively small size. The disproportionate attention commanded by the deal is a sure sign of the weakness in the global equity markets.

Transactions increased: * European Investment Bank

* Deutsche Hypothekenbank Frankfurt AG Rating: Aaa

* Republic of Austria Rating: Aaa/AAA

The loan for mobile telephony firm H3G Italia, Hutchison Whampoa's majority owned Italian subsidiary, is in the final stages of completion. Following a long negotiation period, the borrower has been applauded in the market for tackling head on a downturn in sentiment towards mobile telecoms loans, by structuring a deal that comprises a mixture of full and non-recourse finance.

The Kingdom of Thailand is to invite five banks to submit proposals for a $300m equivalent Samurai bond issue, a decision that could result in the first public international transaction from the sovereign for over four years. Bankers familiar with Thailand's plans said the sovereign wanted to issue the three tranche deal by mid-November. However, some Japanese bankers expressed doubt over the plans, noting that difficult market conditions and the conservative outlook of Japanese investors will pose challenges to the launch.

Taro Pharmaceuticals, the Israel-based drugs company, has completed its $197m secondary share offering. A banker close to the deal said that the issue was the first fully marketed equity deal to be sold after the US attacks. Taro actually started marketing the deal on September 3, but rather than abandoning the deal after the attacks it opted to continue roadshowing in Europe to try to get the issue done.