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HSBC WAS appointed lead manager in the sale of stock in Powszechny Bank Kredytowy (PBK) this week. There had been strong competition among international investment banks for the mandate, with the deal likely to raise around $250m. The sale will be one of the first capital increases for a recently privatised bank. HSBC has been working with the bank for some time. It had been due to lead the privatisation of PBK through a public flotation last year, but the Polish authorities shelved plans for a public offer in favour of a strategic sale and a placement which raised $300m.

THE ITALIAN treasury successfully concluded the sale of its national airline this week with the $450m offering of shares in Alitalia. The shares, already traded in Milan in a fairly illiquid float, were sold by Iri, the Italian state holding company which set an issue price of Lit28,500. Although the deal attracted strong levels of interest from local and international institutional investors, one of the concerns during the marketing period was the high trading price of the outstanding shares.

Asset backed securities: * Celtic Residential Irish Mortgage Securitisation No 1 plc

* World Bank Rating: Aaa/AAA

THE REPUBLIC of Italy demonstrated the pent-up demand for European sovereigns in the dollar sector this week when it launched a $2bn 10 year Eurobond at the best sub-Libor rates that it has ever achieved in the international markets. Italy was able to take advantage of the lack of competing EU sovereign supply as well as arbitrage in the dollar market to generate sub-Libor funding of minus 19bp -- below even what it can achieve in domestic BTPs.