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Mannesmann has mandated a group of banks to arrange another facility, this time backing its acquisition of o.tel.o. Bankers say the loan, likely to be short term, totals about Eu1bn and that Deutsche, Dresdner and Commerzbank are leading the deal.

Egypt Arranger Citibank has seen strong interest from potential participants in the general syndication of the $150m term loan for National Bank of Egypt.

PFANDBRIEF issuers are set to base their latest drive into the international markets around previously established benchmarks, highlighting the rewards the German mortgage banks are reaping for the flexible manner in which they approached the new euro sector early in the year. Rheinische Hypothekenbank will today (Friday) increase its January 2005 benchmark, Hypothekenbank in Essen will soon launch the latest of its global transactions, and Allgemeine Hypothekenbank (AHB) has listed the first jumbo on the Paris stock exchange.

* Warburg Dillon Read has arranged a Eu750m Euro-MTN programme for Norges Statsbaner, the Norwegian state owned railway operator. The company operates nearly all of Norway's rail lines directly, and a subsidiary runs the remainder. Since late 1996, when the Norwegian government divided the company into two entities, NSB has not managed the infrastructure of the railways. Jernbaneverket, the Norwegian National Rail Administration, performs this role.

THE TWO pre-eminent US asset backed issuers, Citibank and MBNA America Bank, both launched deals in European currencies this week, breaking a nine month drought of US product outside dollars. Credit Suisse First Boston lead managed both issues. MBNA brought the first ever securitisation of US assets in euros, with a Eu750m five year floating rate note priced at 14bp over three month Euribor.

MORGAN Stanley Dean Witter aims to launch its £1.54bn securitisation of the prestigious Broadgate office development in the City of London for property company British Land next week. The transaction asks a lot of investors -- they will be taking a very long bet on the continuity of the City of London as a thriving business centre -- but most observers said the glamour of the deal and the quality of the underlying real estate and current tenants would likely ensure success.

* K2 Corporation, the triple-A rated bond arbitrage vehicle set up by Dresdner Bank, this week launched the first deal from its Euro-MTN programme. JP Morgan lead managed the $100m one year deal, which priced at 99.98 to give a discount margin of 3bp through three month Libor on a coupon of Libor minus 5bp. An MTN sales official at JP Morgan said the deal was essentially preplaced privately, and declined to comment further.

Last week's Learning Curve discussed several alternative volatility smile models, all with the common feature that the volatility was a known deterministic function.

KOREA's Ministry of Finance and the Economy told domestic borrowers in a meeting this week that it will grant no further approvals for international bond issues over the near term. Underlining its determination to enforce a debt reduction programme on the republic, the move is also being viewed as a prop for the won which has risen steadily against the dollar over the past month as foreign institutional investment returns to the domestic stock market in force.

JAPANESE finance company Orient Corporation reaffirmed its ambition to be the benchmark issuer of Japanese auto loan backed bonds this week, as DKB International launched the fourth issue from the company's Oscar programme. Orico issued bonds in euros for the first time -- DKBI cut the ¥46bn senior interest in the deal into Eu145m and $150m of senior bonds rated triple-A by Moody's and Standard & Poor's.

THE REVIVAL of the Korean primary equity market progressed this week with Warburg Dillon Read set to launch a $200m GDR sale for Samsung Display Devices (SDD) during the week of May 3. Morgan Stanley Dean Witter's landmark $1.6bn Korea Telecom IPO will be launched during the same week. Bankers said it would be the first time in recent memory that two large deals would be in the market at the same time -- a testament to the change in sentiment among investors.

INITIAL interest in the syndication of the $80m 364 day term loan for Absa Bank has been strong, with about five commitments already logged in with the seven arrangers. The arrangers are American Express, Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi (bookrunner), Crédit Lyonnais (documentation agent), Dai-Ichi Kangyo Bank, First Union, Greenwich NatWest (facility agent) and Standard Chartered (bookrunner). In retail, lead managers are offered 15bp for $5m commitments and managers 10bp for $2.5m.