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Equity market participants were stunned last Friday after the US assassinated Iranian general Qasem Soleimani. It followed what had been a strong end to 2019 in the market with many hopeful the momentum would carry into this year. But banks and investors need to be prepared for shocks, especially as domestic pressure on US president Donald Trump increases in the run up to November's election.

Triple-B rated companies piled into the bond market on Tuesday, as RCI Banque, Fresenius and General Mills raised €2.1bn between them.

Robert "Bob" Fernandez, a veteran of EM debt capital markets, has joined Saudi Aramco's treasury.

The European Investment Bank is showing no signs of fatigue despite a gruelling start to the year. The supranational mandated banks on Tuesday for a five year Sonia floating rate note — its third syndicated deal of 2020.

Some of the SSA market's biggest names are already out for chunky dollar benchmarks, getting off the mark quickly in spite of some sharp moves in swap spreads. Most deals have gone well, but not everything has been a smooth ride.

A strong reception for a five year euro benchmark by KfW on Tuesday was enough to lure in a hesitant flock of public sector borrowers to the euro market as the pipeline stacks up for Wednesday’s business.

New leveraged loan supply has started strong, despite geopolitical jitters leading to softness in the public markets, and it’s not just play-it-safe refi issues. Cision is marketing dual-currency acquisition debt for Platinum Equity’s takeover of the public relations technology firm, while Global University Systems is prepping a deal of nearly €1bn to fund a dividend. Also in the loan market are Ortho-Clinical Diagnostics and Refinitiv’s euro repricing, while Stena and Ashland have mandated potential bond deals.

Obvion has mandated JP Morgan and Rabobank for a Dutch prime RMBS from its Storm programme, the first securitization of the year to receive the ‘simple, transparent and standardised’ (STS) designation.

The euro market welcomed as many as nine new unsecured bonds from financial institutions on Tuesday, as the sector made a roaring start to the year. Attention is now turning to secondary market performance, as bankers look to see how the market absorbs the boom in supply.

Xerox has secured $24bn in financing for its unsolicited debt backed bid for rival technology company HP, as the acquisitive firm looks to quell HP shareholder worries about how it will fund the jumbo deal.

Signify, the acquisitive Dutch lighting company, has signed €1.75bn-equivalent of bank debt, but is looking to drive its leverage ratio down sharply in the coming years.

Premier Oil has become the first company to announce a major ECM transaction in 2020, a £385m ($500m) capital increase to repay debt and finance the acquisition of two UK North Sea oilfields from BP.