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Norway Lead arranger Bank of Nova Scotia has closed a $130m secured non-revolving credit facility for Leif Hoegh, the Norwegian shipping company. The loan was syndicated down to Landesbank Schleswig-Holstein Girozentrale, Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken and Citibank.

* Bayerische Vereinsbank Overseas Finance Guarantor: Bayerische Vereinsbank AG

For the third year in a row, the first privatisation sale of the year looks set to come from Spain with the imminent launch of the final sale of stock in Argentaria, the banking and financial services group. Global co-ordinators Argentaria, Morgan Stanley Dean Witter, Santander Investments and BBV will begin pre-marketing the deal on January 20. There will be two weeks of bookbuilding involving roadshows in Europe and the US before pricing around February 17.

* Bank of Nova Scotia Rating: Aa3/AA-

Arrangers Bayerische Landesbank and NationsBank signed the $200m term loan facility for Airbus Industrie Financial Services Ltd on December 15. Participants in the seven year facility priced at 15bp over Libor are Banco Central Hispano, Banca Commerciale Italiana, L-Bank, Caisse Centrale des Banques Populaires, CIBC Wood Gundy, Commerzbank AG, Deutsche Bank AG, Union Bank of Switzerland and WestLB. *

* Bayerische Hypotheken- und Wechsel-Bank AG Rating: Aa2/A+

YEAR-END pronouncements of a cautious approach in 1998 are already being ignored. Lead managers have piled deals into the new issue market despite the high trading level of most sectors and continuing turmoil in Asia which has pushed government markets to even headier heights. In contrast to previous years, the supply so far has been of a very high quality and in large size; business appears even more fiercely competitive than usual with many of the dollar issues heavily subsidised to reach borrower's targets.

* Republic of Austria Rating: Aaa/AAA

SOCIÉTÉ GÉNÉRALE and Paribas are emerging as the frontrunners for the mandate to advise on the forthcoming privatisation of Air France and as possible lead managers of a sale of shares in the airline. The French government has this week been reviewing pitches from international investment banks for the deal, which should involve a public stock offering, and most continental European firms are competing for some role in the transaction.

FOLLOWING UBS's success last year in launching a going public bond for GTS, the Swiss firm is preparing to join forces with bookrunner Merrill Lynch to take the group public. GTS, which is based in Richmond in the US, has assets in the Russian tele-coms market and has long been expected to list its shares in the US. The IPO will comprise US and European tranches in a $200m transaction that will result in a dual listing for the stock on Nasdaq and Easdaq. The deal will be launched shortly with pre-marketing to take place over three weeks. Pricing is to be set around February 3.