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n Investment bankers have been pitching for the sale of stock in Morocco Telecom. The deal is likely to raise around $1bn and will be the most important equity deal yet to emerge from the Middle East. The government is likely to appoint one local or regional firm to fulfil the home markets alongside one or two international investment banks to distribute stock to international buyers. The timing of the deal is undecided although the last quarter of this year or early next year look the most likely targets.

n Commerzbank AG Rating: Aa3/AA-

A string of successful deals ahead of the summer break look set to improve the outlook for Germany's Neuer Markt after the disappointing performance of new issues in recent weeks. Among the deals attracting strong levels of interest is Dresdner Kleinwort Benson's sale of stock

Paribas launched a highly unusual securitisation this week, parcelling 2,300 small business loans for Sodie SA, a subsidiary of French steelmaker Usinor whose mission is to promote employment in regions of France where the steel industry has contracted, putting people out of work. In the diversity of its exposure, the deal is most closely comparable to Deutsche's CORE collateralised loan obligation, which parcels very large numbers of loans to small and medium sized German businesses, and to Gerling Insurance Group's SECTRS transaction in March this year, which conveyed exposure to a reference portfolio of 92,000 European companies as a hedge for Gerling's credit insurance book.

PINAULT Printemps La Redoute is at last to tap the Euroloan market for a Eu1bn credit arranged by SG, Commerzbank and Crédit Mutuel. Proceeds are likely to be used for general corporate purposes including the refinancing of existing debt and most bankers think that they will not be used to finance the possible acquisition of Gucci.

SALOMON Smith Barney has joined Chase Manhattan and Deutsche Bank as lead arranger of the three debt leveraged debt facilities backing Hicks, Muse Tate & Furst's buy-out of Hillsdown Holdings, the food-to-furniture group. The three lead arrangers are to launch the three facilities today (Friday), ending the intense speculation that has surrounded the deal. Market interest has been high - many bankers have been intrigued as to the structure that the arrangers will adopt for the sale of such a wide ranging conglomerate.

Deutsche Bank further expanded the nascent Portuguese securitisation market last Friday, launching its largest deal yet, backed by a broad mixture of corporate and retail assets. Tagus Financing No 1 is backed by assets from two subsidiaries of Banco Mello, Portugal's sixth largest banking group. In March 1998 Mello became the second Portuguese institution to use securitisation, when Deutsche's Rheingold ABCP conduit bought Esc15bn of unsecured consumer loans from the bank.

Paribas launched a highly unusual securitisation this week, parcelling 2,300 small business loans for Sodie SA, a subsidiary of French steelmaker Usinor whose mission is to promote employment in regions of France where the steel industry has contracted, putting people out of work. In the diversity of its exposure, the deal is most closely comparable to Deutsche's CORE collateralised loan obligation, which parcels very large numbers of loans to small and medium sized German businesses, and to Gerling Insurance Group's SECTRS transaction in March this year, which conveyed exposure to a reference portfolio of 92,000 European companies as a hedge for Gerling's credit insurance book.

US credit card bank MBNA appeared in the Euromarkets in two guises this week, selling Eu500m of bonds backed by US collateral through MAESTRO 6, and a £250m securitisation of its UK portfolio, CARDS 9. The US asset deal is MBNA's second in euros - at the end of April the bank became the first American institution to securitise in the single currency, with a Eu750m five year floater, lead managed by Credit Suisse First Boston.

Commonwealth Bank of Australia this week priced an A$180m bond issue, completing Australia's first synthetic collateralised loan obligation. Medallion Credit Linked Trust Series 1999-1 issued four hard bullet five year tranches rated by Moody's and Standard & Poor's. Proceeds are invested in Commonwealth government securities, and a credit default swap subjects noteholders to the risk on $1.5bn of CBA's exposure to 104 corporates and banks.

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