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INTERNET plays dominated new French issuance this week with two rival online brokerages and a community site lining up IPOs. SG and JP Morgan will launch premarketing for the spin-off of the French bank internet brokerage arm Fimitex in a Eu150m-Eu200m IPO on Monday.

What a busy time at JP Morgan, the house which has always promised to conquer the world, but is still waiting for a supply of live ammunition. Just to set the record straight, we do have lots of friends among JP Morgan's best and brightest up and coming young thrusters, who are sharpening their swords behind closed doors and waiting for the revolution to come - let's hope that day happens before the bank receives a hostile bid. It is only among JP Morgan's upper ranks where we are greeted with a wall of silence. Maybe they just don't like to talk? In the meantime, however, please be assured that we are not losing a moment's sleep.

JP Morgan (books) and SG have won the mandate to arrange a deal worth about Eu500m for French advertising company Havas Advertising. The debt will be used to support the borrower's acquisition of Snyder Communications of the US. The acquisition is to be carried out as a Eu2.1bn share swap, making the combined company the fourth largest advertising firm in the world, worth about $6.5bn. The proceeds of the loan will be used to refinance the target's existing debt, and should be launched in the next two weeks.

KREDITANSTALT für Wiederaufbau priced its first ever global dollar bond yesterday (Thursday), a $2bn five year that marks another step in the agency's bid to strengthen its position outside Europe by playing on its status as German sovereign risk. But the agency faced an uphill struggle as dollar swap spreads, already volatile for several weeks, widened between launch on Wednesday and pricing on Thursday as US stockmarkets fell 2% intraday. Within an hour of pricing, the spread widened from 61.5bp over the 5.875% November 2004 UST to 64bp over.

KREDITANSTALT für Wiederaufbau priced its first ever global dollar bond yesterday (Thursday), a $2bn five year that marks another step in the agency's bid to strengthen its position outside Europe by playing on its status as German sovereign risk. But the agency faced an uphill struggle as dollar swap spreads, already volatile for several weeks, widened between launch on Wednesday and pricing on Thursday as US stockmarkets fell 2% intraday. Within an hour of pricing, the spread widened from 61.5bp over the 5.875% November 2004 UST to 64bp over.

ALTERNATIVE telecoms provider Level 3 Communications set new records in the international high yield market yesterday (Thursday) with a $2.2bn equivalent transaction which included the largest high yield offering in euros to date. The Eu800m of bonds, split into eight and 10 year tranches, boosted high yield syndicates' hopes that in 2000 the European high yield market will start to shed its dependence on the US. The B3/B rated combined dollar and euro offering was the fourth largest corporate high yield bond sale ever and Level 3 raised financing totalling more than $5bn through the equity, equity linked and debt capital markets.

Argentina Pricing has emerged for the $80m B-loan being arranged for Banco Hipotecario SA by IFC and Barclays Bank (Miami).

ALTERNATIVE telecoms provider Level 3 Communications set new records in the international high yield market yesterday (Thursday) with a $2.2bn equivalent transaction which included the largest high yield offering in euros to date. The Eu800m of bonds, split into eight and 10 year tranches, boosted high yield syndicates' hopes that in 2000 the European high yield market will start to shed its dependence on the US. The B3/B rated combined dollar and euro offering was the fourth largest corporate high yield bond sale ever and Level 3 raised financing totalling more than $5bn through the equity, equity linked and debt capital markets.

* Swedish Export Credit Rating: Aa2/AA+

Bahrain The $68m two year term loan for Aluminium Bahrain (Alba) is oversubscribed but no decision has yet been taken on an increase. Sumitomo is the arranger.