United States

Yankee banks joined supply frenzy in US dollars this week, as they looked to take advantage of positive funding conditions.

In this round-up, both China and the US offered signs of peace around trade, the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) rolled out 12 measures for further market reform and opening up, and the country’s top internet authority is tightening its control over online content.

The breakneck speed of dollar corporate bond issuance continued this week, with lower rated investment grade borrowers dominating investors' attention as they came to the market to lock in attractive financing rates amid fears the credit rally may run out of steam.

Moody’s slashed Ford’s rating from Baa3 to Ba1 on Monday, placing the company in precarious crossover territory, with S&P and Fitch holding the firm at BBB with negative outlook. Other falling angels may land in the junkyard soon as the triple-B sector has ballooned to record levels.

How much emphasis do you put on a tweet? According to JP Morgan and its recent ‘Volfefe Index’, 280 characters is all US president Donald Trump needs to shock the markets. The aim is to create an index “to measure the impact of the president’s tweets on rates volatility”. However, with algorithmic trading and tweet aggregation commonplace, many market participants are unconvinced that the index brings anything new to the table.

Moody’s slashed Ford’s rating from Baa3 to Ba1 on Monday, placing the company in precarious crossover territory, as the other agencies have the firm on negative outlook. Other falling angels may land in the junkyard soon.

One of the world’s largest companies made its debut in the yen bond market last week, as Berkshire Hathaway placed ¥430bn ($4bn) of multi-tranche debt. With the Japanese government yield curve offering sub-zero returns for anything under 15 years, the six tranche deal offered investors a chance to earn a yield pick-up, according to bankers away from the deal.

FIG borrowers jumped into the dollar market with lightning speed this week, snapping up attractive financing rates.

In this round-up, the US and China agree to meet in October in Washington, Hong Kong's chief executive formally withdraws the extradition bill and the Chinese state council is set to release local government bond quotas for 2020 early.

Apple and Walt Disney starred in the US corporate bond market this week, as the market roared back from the Labor Day holiday with a huge stack of deals that bankers said had broken the record for a single week in the US corporate and financial institution bond market.

UBS is revamping its investment bank to put the unit on a more global footing and boost collaboration across divisions, in a move that finally draws a line under the Andrea Orcel era.

The arrival of star Credit Suisse banker Iqbal Khan gives UBS’s chief executive Sergio Ermotti the chance to achieve his ambition of reaching a decade at the helm of the bank while securing a smooth transition, writes David Rothnie. Meanwhile, UBS’s restructuring, announced on Thursday, marks a focus on intragroup collaboration.