News
On 11 January, International Finance Corporation (IFC) (AAA/Aaa) launched a minimum A$50 million (US$38.9 million) increase to its February 2031 Kangaroo bond. The forthcoming deal is being marketed at 30 basis points area over semi-quarterly swap and 28.8 basis points area over Australian Commonwealth government bond. Pricing is expected in the near future, according to lead managers Nomura and TD Securities.
The Australian dollar market returned in the first week of 2021 with a A$1.25 billion (US$971.2 million) climate-awareness bond from European Investment Bank - the largest-ever Kangaroo green, social or sustainability bond.
European Investment Bank (EIB) started Australian dollar deal flow for 2021 on 5 January, with a record-breaking climate-awareness bond (CAB) transaction. Deal sources say there are some new dynamics emerging which could support Kangaroo supranational, sovereign and agency (SSA) borrowers in 2021, though some of the factors which dragged on the sector in 2020 also remain.
International Finance Corporation (IFC) (AAA/Aaa) launched a minimum A$20 million (US$15.5 million) tap of its April 2035 Kangaroo social bond on 6 January. The forthcoming deal has indicative price guidance of 34 basis points area over semi-quarterly swap and 27 basis points area over Australian Commonwealth government bond. Nomura is leading and expects the deal to price in the near future.
The fallout from COVID-19 will linger beyond lockdowns for rated retail REITs, according to S&P Global Ratings senior director, corporate ratings, Craig Parker, and associate, corporate ratings, Rhys Corry. In Australasia, COVID-19 containment measures are eroding retail REIT earnings and reducing asset value amid unprecedented structural disruption.
European Investment Bank is one of the EU’s primary vehicles for achieving its sustainability goals and is therefore at the vanguard of European and global sustainable debt markets. The supranational tells KangaNews it aims to use this position to provide a blueprint for itself and others to implement ambitious sustainable-finance strategies.
As environmental, social and governance issues become ever-more integrated with the credit investment process in Australia, the issue of pricing consequences for strong and weak performers is more relevant than ever. This is no longer just a question for direct emitters but also for companies with business models adjacent to emissions-intensive industries.
As the sustainable debt market evolves at a quickening pace, the most important factor for issuers to keep abreast of is what investors want from them – what is considered best practice on a transaction basis and as ongoing environmental, social and governance (ESG) commitments. In December, KangaNews polled Australasian investors to ascertain their up-to-the-minute thinking.
Toward the end of a tumultuous year, leaders of ANZ’s institutional business across a raft of sectors gathered at a KangaNews roundtable to discuss the impact of COVID-19, how they supported customers during this unprecedented period, how business has changed and the bank’s role in resetting investment and growth on a more positive trajectory.
In the second of two roundtables exploring corporate sectors on the front line of the COVID-19 crisis, in November 2020 KangaNews and Westpac Institutional Bank hosted issuers and analysts from the Australian REIT sector to talk about pandemic fallout. The conversation covered crisis response and the new shape of the sector in future, including the likely impact on individual property categories.