UniCredit

Alain Afflelou, the French optician chain, priced its €440m bond issue on Thursday April 17 – the second European high yield deal in three days to have the more aggressive 1.5 year initial non-call period.

In contrast to their evaporating taste for Russian risk, banks’ buoyant appetite for central and eastern European names was underlined this week as Energeticky a Prumyslovy Holding (EPH) launched its largest syndicated loan, writes Michael Turner.

Bauer Group, the German industrial equipment manufacturer, has signed a €450m syndicated credit facility to refinance nearly all its short term debt.

Italian insurer Assicurazioni Generali took advantage of a good market tone to offer up a deal that combined several features of recent success stories: subordinated insurance debt, and Europe's periphery.

Banks have been mandated to arrange a €1.7bn syndicated loan to refinance debt raised by Czech energy firm Energeticky a Prumyslovy Holding to buy a stake in Slovak gas company Slovensky Plynarensky Priemysel in January 2013.

In yet another sign of the European high yield market's bullishness, SGD Group, the French glass packaging company and a debut issuer, has priced a fixed rate bond with an unconventionally short non-call period, increased the deal and sold it inside price guidance. And SGD is not alone — Alain Afflelou, a French optician chain, is following the short call example.

TeamSystem, the Italian software designer and distributor, has sold a €130m tap of its 7.375% 2020 bond to finance its acquisition of 24Ore Software.

Groupe Auchan, the French supermarket chain, launched its first bond of the year on Tuesday, into an empty European corporate bond market. Despite the dark clouds massing over Ukraine, there was strong demand and the issuer hit its size and pricing targets.

Société Générale returned to the covered bond market on Tuesday after a four month absence to issue the sixth French covered bond deal of the year and the third from France with a 10 year maturity. By limiting the deal size, leads were able to price flat to its curve, and with barely any premium to the French government.

Snam, the Italian gas transport network, found very strong demand on Wednesday for a €500m bond issue, as investors ignored the threat of war between Russia and Ukraine and piled into West European corporate credit.

Volkswagen’s thirst for funding appears unslakeable at present. The first three months of this year were its busiest quarter for issuance ever, by a wide margin, and since April began VW has also been pumping out deals.

FGA Capital, the car finance company jointly owned by Fiat and Crédit Agricole, sold another blowout bond on Wednesday, after a run of highly sought-after deals.