Société Générale

On Wednesday BP became the third UK issuer to sell bonds in euros this week. The €1.5bn dual tranche deal followed oil entering bear market territory on Tuesday.

The spate of equity linked issuance since the market reopened in mid-May quickened on Thursday with the launch of the largest “real CB” in EMEA for more than two years: a $1.5bn deal for STMicroelectronics, one of the region’s most prolific issuers.

Société de Financement Local (SFiL), a French agency, sold its inaugural dollar trade this week, issuing into an otherwise quiet market.

Altran Technologies’ founding shareholders and investor Apax Partners raised €297m on Wednesday after pricing an accelerated equity sale within the lower half of expectations.

Isbank raised $500m with the 10th deal from a Turkish financial this year with a tidy though somewhat lacklustre trade. While EM bankers suggested it was evidence of some Turkish bank fatigue among investors, the leads said the trade was symptomatic of the weaker market backdrop.

The Luxembourg Stock Exchange (LuxSE) signed an agreement this week with the Shanghai Stock Exchange (SSE) for a green bond index, the latest move by China to boost its green credentials and entice international investors. Morgan Davis reports.

Isbank opened books on Thursday for the 10th deal from a Turkish financial this year, offering a higher than usual new issue premium in the process to account for softer market conditions. While the deal is expected to be well absorbed, for some on the buyside, the risks of an Isbank tier two are too much.

Apax Partners and other shareholders are tonight selling a block of about €300m of shares in Paris-traded Altran Technologies.

French agency Société de Financement Local (SFiL) raised $1bn with its first ever dollar bond on Wednesday, while the German State of North Rhein-Westphalia pushed out its curve to 2048.

Louis Dreyfus Co Asia has enlisted four mandated lead arrangers and bookrunners to distribute a $400m three year loan.

Plastic Omnium, the unrated French car parts maker, on Monday became the first company that had held a European bond roadshow last week to launch a deal.

European corporate bond markets have quickly shrugged off the uncertainty surrounding the UK election result and central bank meetings, and look set for a busy end to June.