UniCredit

Gazprom this week sold its first euro denominated bond of the year, a €750m seven year, with a new issue premium that a lead manager has estimated at only 0bp-2bp.

Russian state owned giant Gazprom released initial price thoughts for a euro seven year bond on Wednesday morning at a level that bankers away from the deal said was around 20bp back of the company’s curve.

Investors in green corporate bonds had two very different deals offered to them on Tuesday. Spanish utility Iberdrola sold a green hybrid bond, while Toyota Motor Credit Corp, Toyota’s auto finance subsidiary, offered a long 3.5 year green tranche alongside a seven year non-green tranche.

UK based drinks manufacturer Diageo returned to corporate bond markets on Wednesday with a three year and long six year dual tranche offering, while German housing association Vonovia continued the recent trend for two year floating rate notes.

Following French food company Danone’s recent hugely successful hybrid corporate debut, investors have been waiting for the next hybrid trade. This week they had two to consider.

Demand is so hot in Europe's corporate bond market, that with pricing being driven to ever tighter levels, bankers are beginning to believe the rally is self-sustaining, and would continue even without European Central Bank (ECB) support, writes Nigel Owen.

The European high yield bond pipeline was stuffed with an array of mainly sub-benchmark deals this week, after issuance volume hit a historic high.

Leveraged loan issuance is set to outpace sales of new high yield bonds with a surge this year, pushed by a varied array of borrowers seeking not just tighter margins on old debt, such as US chemical group Angus this week, but also funding for acquisitions, as with Nordic travel operator Etraveli.

If the only benchmark euro deal on Thursday had been true to its roots, it would have built a waiting list rather than an order book. But demand still far outstripped supply when Italian luxury sports car manufacturer Ferrari sold its second corporate bond issue.

Italian corporate issuers have dominated bond issuance in recent weeks but Wednesday brought a pair from Iberia, as two energy suppliers took advantage of the market's hot conditions.

German car manufacturer Daimler has proven a good medium to track the tightening of euro corporate bond credit spreads in 2017, having issued more than €9bn before the end of October. On Tuesday, a €1bn 10 year deal took that total within €1bn of the issuer’s 2016 total, but it didn’t come cheap.

On Monday, French laboratory testing company Eurofins Scientific followed last Monday’s €299m equity sale with a €300m hybrid deal paying very little new issue premium, as the firm’s funding keeps pace with its acquisitions.