UK

Trading levels given are bid-side spreads versus mid-swaps and/or an underlying benchmark and bid-yields from the close of business on Monday, June 22. The source for secondary trading levels is ICE Data Services.

German pharmaceuticals company Boehringer Ingelheim has sold its remaining stake in UK drug maker Hikma Pharmaceuticals, after a surge in investor interest in pharma stocks during the Covid-19 global pandemic.

Andrew Bailey, the governor of the Bank of England, has hinted at a dramatic reversal of the central bank’s long-standing monetary policy strategy, with the idea that it would be better to reduce the stock of its asset purchases before raising interest rates.

The US Federal Reserve will publish the results of its latest bank stress tests this week, after updating the exercise to include three new scenarios related to Covid-19. The new scenarios could have a bearing on dividend policy, but capital requirements will still be based on the pre-pandemic stress test model.

The European Banking Authority will carry on guiding banks to apply favourable treatment to loans covered by payment holidays, though it recognises that liquidity issues facing companies during the Covid-19 pandemic could soon turn into solvency issues.

UK government bonds sold off sharply as the Bank of England announced an increase to its asset purchase facility on Thursday but said it expected no further increase to the programme before the end of the year, leading to a much slower rate of buying.

China Pacific Insurance (Group) Co became the second company to use the London-Shanghai Stock Connect scheme this week, listing Global Depository Receipts on London’s bourse. The deal could spur further London-bound issuance by Chinese firms, according to bankers in the UK and Asia. Jonathan Breen and Aidan Gregory report.

Taylor Wimpey, one of the UK’s largest house builders, has raised £522m in equity capital to acquire land that it thinks will have fallen in value as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

Angus Whelchel, former global head of private capital markets at Barclays, has been hired by US boutique advisory group Moelis & Co to head its private capital markets team.

One of the sectors so far unscathed through the pandemic, in the eyes of institutional investors, has been UK social housing. Deals from housing associations have been priced during the crisis, as several institutions have said their resolve to invest in the sector remains undimmed.

Legal & General’s order books peaked at over £4bn ($4.96bn) as it made its first sale of restricted tier one (RT1) capital this week, joining many of its UK peers in the asset class. The insurer used the popularity of its trade to tighten the pricing and leave no new issue premium behind.

Virgin Money secured its first foothold in the euro market on Wednesday, selling €500m of senior debt from its holding company as part of a deal that had been initially been postponed because of Covid-19 concerns.