News
On December 18, Macquarie Bank (Macquarie) revealed plans to launch a residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) transaction in the early part of 2016. The self-arranged transaction, PUMA Series 2016-1 Trust, will be launched under the PUMA Australian RMBS programme.
New South Wales Treasury Corporation (TCorp) revised its term-funding task for 2015/16 to zero on December 17, thanks to the first of three major planned state-asset transactions and a deposit from the state government. TCorp's funding task as announced following the state's 2015/16 budget in May was A$7.3 billion (US$5.2 billion).
Korea National Oil Corporation (KNOC) (AA-/Aa3/AA-) has disclosed plans to meet fixed-income investors in Australia during the week beginning January 11 next year. The issuer may follow with a new bond transaction subject to market conditions.
Guy Debelle, Sydney-based assistant governor, financial markets at the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA), used a December 16 speech to provide insights into how banks have adapted the asset and liability sides of their balance sheets to liquidity-coverage ratio (LCR) rules. He hinted at regulatory scrutiny of, in particular, the makeup of high-quality liquid-asset (HQLA) holdings and the use of self-securitisation.
The latest Australian government sector borrower to announce a mid-year update to its funding task, Queensland Treasury Corporation (QTC), disclosed a requirement reduced by A$600 million (US$432.5 million) on December 16. QTC now expects to issue A$5.9 billion in 2015/16, with the reduction driven by a fall in new client borrowing requirements.
Australia's mid-year economic and fiscal outlook (MYEFO) helped spur another substantial increase in the Australia Office of Financial Management (AOFM)'s funding plan, leading at least one analyst pondering the potential consequences of a sovereign downgrade.
A slower-than-expected improvement in New Zealand government finances revealed at the half-year fiscal and economic update (HYFEO) on December 15 leads the New Zealand Debt Management Office to forecast a somewhat larger funding task from next year. But analysts say the government's willingness to run larger deficits rather than seeking to cut spending is a sign of confidence rather than weakness.
The mid-year budget update rounds began in Australia as South Australian Government Financing Authority posted an eased funding requirement, and in New Zealand the reserve bank cut the official cash rate for the fourth time in 2015. Elsewhere, deal flow remained light.
National Australia Bank (NAB) revealed on November 19 that it has priced the refinancing of the class A2 notes of NAB's National RMBS Trust 2012-2 residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) issue with new, class A2-R, notes.
Following the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ)'s decision to lower the official cash rate (OCR) by 25 basis points on December 10, analysts believe the reserve bank does not intend to cut further unless its hand is forced. However, the consensus appears to be that a near-neutral stance from the RBNZ will not last long into 2016 and that further cuts remain likely.