News
The Australian Office of Financial Management will make two further rounds of investments into residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) as it approaches the completion of its total A$8 billion (US$6.48 billion) allocation, having announced the penultimate pair of trades it will support as part of its current RFP on June 2.
On May 28 over 250 parties with an interest in the Australian corporate bond market met in Sydney in an event hosted by ANZ Banking Group (ANZ), Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CommBank), National Australia Bank (NAB) and Westpac Institutional Bank (Westpac), to discuss the means by which a revival in local corporate issuance can be stimulated.
On May 29 KfW Bankengruppe (KfW) (AAA/Aaa/AAA) priced its third Kangaroo transaction in just over a month, bringing a new five-year bond with pricing of 75 basis points over mid-swap. The A$750 million (US$591.6 million) transaction is also the first new Kangaroo line from an agency issuer in 2009.
On May 28 KfW Bankengruppe (KfW) (AAA/Aaa/AAA) launched its third Kangaroo transaction in just over a month, announcing a new five-year bond with indicative pricing of 75 basis points over mid-swap. The A$400 million (US$312.44 million) minimum transaction will also be the first new Kangaroo line from an agency issuer in 2009.
New South Wales Treasury Corporation (TCorp) (AAA/Aaa/AAA) sold A$2.55 billion (US$1.98 billion) in a new 2013 line via bookbuild on May 27, with a slight pricing premium over its existing lines helping secure oversubscriptions of just under a billion dollars.
The three-year bond offering by Downer EDi (Downer) (BBB-) through its New Zealand subsidiary Works Finance (Works) which lodged a prospectus on May 27 will offer investors a minimum coupon of 8.75 per cent – making the deal the highest-paying senior transaction in the New Zealand market this year.
Fairfax Media (BB+) has completed the buyback of its A$200 million (US$157 million) fixed rate June 2011 bonds that it opened on May 21. Dale Bridle, group treasurer, says the company bought back A$32.3 million of the bonds at 84 cents in the dollar.
Westpac Banking Corporation (Westpac) (AA/Aa1) priced its first unguaranteed benchmark transaction of 2009 on May 26, selling A$1.7 billion (US$1.32 billion) of fixed and floating rate three-year paper at 120 basis points over swap in a deal which the bank hopes will presage a return to predominantly unguaranteed issuance in the 2009/10 financial year.
The second of three residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) to price as part of the Australian Office of Financial Management (AOFM)’s latest round of investment in the market, Resimac’s Premier Series 2009-1, was upsized from A$400 million (US$312 million) to A$550 million on May 21 as a small group of third party investors continue to buy small traches of very short-dated paper.
Westpac Banking Corporation (Westpac) (AA/Aa1) launched its first unguaranteed benchmark transaction of 2009 on May 26, seeking a minimum of A$1 billion (US$781 million) of three-year funding through the deal. Westpac will be the last of the big four Australian banks to bring a deal not covered by the sovereign guarantee.
After a relatively slow period for issuance in offshore currencies, Australasian banks have conducted some activity in sterling and yen in recent weeks with National Australia Bank (NAB) (AA/Aa1), Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CommBank) (AA/Aa1) and Macquarie Bank (Macquarie) (A-/A2) securing the equivalent of over A$1 billion (US$775.5 million) each – the former in two deals, one of them public and unguaranteed.
Fairfax Media Group (Fairfax) (BB+) announced on May 21 that it is “considering” a buyback of its A$200 million (US$154.82 million) June 2011 domestic bond, with market sources saying the issuer is attempting to take an opportunity to replace the public bond with a cheaper source of debt funding.