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Sell-side analysts say bonds of Samsonite Corporation (Caa1/CCC+) are an attractive pickup for investors, as they expect a fairly healthy economy and a return to something resembling normalcy in the travel industry within the next year. Arthur Roulac, consumer products sector analyst at Banc of America Securities, says that among the credits he covers, Samsonite has been hit the hardest in the wake of the attacks on the U.S. The luggage maker's 10.75% senior subordinated notes of '08 were bid in the mid- to high-60s last week, having been in the low- to mid-80s throughout August.

Australian Magnesium Corporation (AMC) is to proceed with its A$500m share issue, despite uncertainties in the global share markets and misleading press reports surrounding the possible issue. However, there is as yet no clear information on the timing for the new offer, the precise terms of the deal or of the roles the three local banks would take.

Japanese finance company Orient Corp (Orico) this week formally launched its largest ever securitisation with a deal backed by a portfolio of its auto loans that offered notes in both dollars and euros. Lead managed by Mizuho International, the deal was originally set for launch during the week of the US terrorist attacks. Mizuho postponed until this week.

ING Barings has financed a $500m securitisation for Samsung Card Co Ltd of South Korea through one of its asset backed commercial paper conduits. Backed by 'card loans' that Samsung Card extends to its retail customers, the deal is one of the largest securitisations conducted in non-Japan Asia.

Continuing boldly with its plans to access the subordinated debt market, Suncorp Metway launched a A$275m two tranche 10 year non-call five issue this week. The lower tier two transaction is the first vanilla deal to be priced in the domestic market since the US terrorist attacks curtailed secondary trading volumes.

Australia Standard & Poor's placed the A- rating of Coles Myers on CreditWatch negative. The agency said that its decision stemmed from CMS's exposure to discretionary consumer spending and the poor performance of its non-food businesses.

China Global Bio-Chem Technology Group, one of China's top three corn processors, wants to raise as much as HK$457m ($58.7m) in a new share issue, according to unconfirmed press reports.

Iberdrola International has increased the debt limit off its euro3 billion ($2.75 billion) Euro-MTN programme to euro5 billion.

The initial public offering price for the privatisation of state owned Internet Thailand was set in the range of Bt3.20-Bt4.00 per share on Wednesday, according to lead underwriter ABN Amro Asia. At the top end of the range, the deal will produce a market capitalisation for the stock equivalent to around $22.5m. Internet Thailand produced Bt310m in revenue last year and achieved Bt51m net profit. The government plans to reduce its holding to 49% from 100% through the IPO. Employees will receive a 7% stake.

A pre-placement of Singapore Telecommunications stock that originally took place in June was finally concluded this week as the UK's Cable & Wireless (C&W) completed the disposal of a block of 834.912m SingTel shares. Merrill Lynch arranged the deal and the price was set back in the third week of June at S$1.699 per share, but that was adjusted to the equivalent of S$1.6411 because the terms of the June agreement set the US dollar price at $0.9366 per share.

Australia JP Morgan continues to syndicate the A$76.25m dual tranche LBO for Penrice Holdings Pty.

Out there in the Euromarkets, life is grim. The sheer volume of casualties in New York and Washington, and the passengers on the hijacked planes, means that many houses have lost friends and colleagues. Three weeks after the disaster we are still walking around in a daze. But every professional Euromarketeer knows they must pick up the pieces while continuing to grieve for those who died or were wounded. The world's stockmarkets are in their most precipitous decline since the Autumn of 1998. Valuations of even the best investment, and commercial banks, have tumbled. The M&A game seems to be on indefinite hold. IPOs are virtually non-existent and household names such as Prada have been forced to postpone their stockmarket flotations.