TD Securities

Bank Nederlandse Gemeenten brought a 10 year dollar benchmark this week that sparked much debate about whether other issuers would be able to follow in the tenor. Although with a flurry of other trades this week, it is clear that other options are available once next week’s US Federal Reserve meeting is held.

Council of Europe Development Bank and World Bank on Wednesday added to a strong week from public sector borrowers in the dollar market ahead of a vitally important US Federal Reserve meeting.

Berlin Hyp issued the first negative yielding covered bond this week, giving investors a sign of things to come as financial institutions prepare for another round of monetary policy stimulus from the European Central Bank.

There was a double breakthrough in dollars for public sector borrowers on Tuesday, as Bank Nederlandse Gemeenten reopened the 10 year part of the curve for core issuers for the first time in seven months and Sweden priced the tightest three year benchmark since the first week of the year.

Five year bonds continue to dominate the public sector dollar market, with the World Bank and European Investment Bank securing oversubscribed books at what is proving to be the sweet spot for the currency.

The World Bank on Tuesday mandated for a dollar benchmark, as action in the market heated up in anticipation of the Federal Open Market Committee’s meeting on March 15-16.

The European Investment Bank is to hit the dollar market with a five year benchmark, its second print in the currency this year, as issuers continue to focus on the short end of the curve.

Toronto-Dominion Bank followed its quarterly earnings report with a deal on Monday, paying up versus floating rate and dollar formats to extend its euro fixed-rate senior curve with a five year transaction.

Nordic Investment Bank has printed the second dollar benchmark from an SSA this week, as issuers contend with the effects on pricing of negative swap spreads.

Nordic Investment Bank is preparing a three year dollar benchmark, following a KfW five year deal that had to brave a backdrop of negative swap spreads.

KfW hit screens with a five year dollar benchmark on Tuesday that is offering the issuer’s widest swap spread at the tenor in several years, which bankers away from the mandate attributed to negative swap spreads and market-wide volatility last week.

Rentenbank was the sole issuer to test the dollar market this week, printing a $750m floating rate note.