News
Asian Development Bank (AAA/Aaa/AAA) (ADB) has returned to the Kangaroo market for the fourth time this year, pricing a A$150 million (US$141.77 million) increase to its 2011 line on June 11 – the first time the bank has visited Australia for four transactions in a year.
Export Development Canada (AAA/Aaa) (EDC) has continued the recent mini vogue for agency issuers in the Kauri market, pricing a new NZ$200 million (US$150.58 million) 2011 transaction on June 11 with lead managers Bank of New Zealand (BNZ) and TD Securities (TD).
Despite recent renewed volatility, the Australian bond market has demonstrated renewed consistency so far in 2008, with just a single week – the first of the year – passing with no issuance activity. In a 52 week period to June 6 2008, by contrast, a total of 10 weeks saw a silent primary market for both domestic and Kangaroo issuers.
A quiet week for new issuance meant little movement in KangaNews’s league tables. In the combined Kangaroo and domestic table (including self-led deals), nabCapital solidified its hold on second spot – behind Commonwealth Bank of Australia – on the back of its parent's A$310 million (US$297.48 million) private placement.
The NZ$50 million (US$38.29 million) increase to Rentenbank’s (AAA/Aaa/AAA) 2017 Kauri bond, which priced on June 6, has made it the second agency to exceed NZ$500 million outstanding in the market – until recently the repo-eligibility limit imposed on such issuers by Reserve Bank of New Zealand.
ANZ Banking Group (ANZ) has become the latest of the major Australian banks to price a domestic deal, increasing its 2012 fixed and floating rate bond by a total of A$620 million on June 5 despite uncertainty triggered by the recent wide-scale downgrades of US financial institutions by ratings agencies.
Retail demand, always significant in domestic hybrid transactions, accounts for a large majority of the Macquarie Group (Macquarie) A$600 million (US$572.22 million) convertible preference security (CPS) transaction which completed its bookbuild on June 4.
KfW Bankengruppe (AAA/Aaa/AAA) brought the first Kangaroo transaction for two weeks on June 5 with a A$400 million (US$381.8 million) increase to its August 2011 line. The bond has now grown to A$1.4 million since its launch in February this year.
New South Wales Treasury Corporation (TCorp) has revealed a new funding requirement of A$4.9 billion (US$4.69 billion) for financial year 2008/9 – in line with the indicative range it had previously revealed and significantly below the A$8.2 billion requirement for FY2007/8.
Large deal sizes continue to be a feature of the Australian market in 2008 in the wake of Royal Bank Scotland Australia's combined A$1.125 billion (US$1.07 billion) multi-tranche issue from May 29. The double-maturity transaction is the 10th time an Australian issuer has brought over a billion dollars in one go so far this year.
Increased domestic issuance was not enough to dislodge RBC Capital Markets (RBCCM) from top spot in KangaNews's combined Kangaroo and Australian domestic intermediary league table, although Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CommBank)'s presence on the top line of Royal Bank of Scotland Australia Branch's local debut solidified its position in third place.
St.George Bank (A+/Aa2/A+) priced a A$50 million (US$47.7 million) increase to the floating rate tranche of the July 2010 bond it originally brought to market in July 2005. The latest private placement, which lead manager UBS Investment Bank says was sold domestically, priced at 72 basis points over BBSW.