News
DNB NoR Boligkreditt AS (DNBB) issued its inaugural Kangaroo covered bond transaction on June 1. The June 2016 transaction has a volume of A$600 million (US$644.5 million) and priced at 85 basis points over semi-quarterly swap.
On June 1, Transurban Finance Company (Transurban) (A-/Baa1/A-), the financing entity of Transurban Group, issued a new A$200 million (US$215 million) June 2016 domestic issue. The proceeds of the notes, combined with undrawn bank lines, will be used to repay an upcoming A$300 million September 2011 maturity. Investors holding the existing maturity have also been given the opportunity to redeem these notes early, at a rate of par plus accrued interest to the date of redemption.
Australian Capital Territory (ACT) (AAA) launched and priced its inaugural MTN issue on May 31, issuing a A$300 million (US$321.2 million) seven-year maturity. It achieved a margin of 56 basis points over the January 2018 ACGB.
European Investment Bank (EIB) (AAA/Aaa/AAA) is the fourth supranational, sovereign and agency (SSA) borrower to access the Kauri market in two weeks, completing a NZ$200 million (US$164.4 million) 10-year floating rate note (FRN) issue on May 30.
Asian Development Bank (ADB) (AAA/Aaa/AAA) completed a A$650 million (US$1.025 billion) increase of its May 2014 Kangaroo on May 31. The tap is the first increase of the line, which was introduced in May 2009 at a volume of A$375 million and priced at a margin of 75 basis points over swap.
On May 27 Moody's Investors Service (Moody's) downgraded the long-term ratings of New Zealand's four major banks, following the May 18 announcement that their respective parent banks had been downgraded by the rating agency.
A panoply of deals was again brought by Australian and New Zealand issuers this week, as momentum kicked on in various markets. Intermediaries are hopeful that opportunities for further issuance in Australia will continue to rise, especially in the corporate and asset-backed sectors, while on the other side of the Tasman, a long hoped-for resurgence in Kauri activity is meeting rising demand.
Investa Funds Management (Investa) (A-), as responsible entity for Investa Commercial Property Fund (ICPF), issued a new A$250 million (US$261.9 million) domestic five-year transaction on May 25. The deal was upsized from a launch volume of A$200 million and priced in line with guidance at 145 basis points over swap.
Western Australian Treasury Corporation (WATC) (AAA/Aaa) has announced a mildly increased borrowing programme of A$16.1 billion (US$17 billion) for 2011/12 following the release of the state of Western Australia (WA)'s budget for the next financial year. WATC has no plans to issue inflation-linked bonds domestically as yet, but tells KangaNews that offshore currency issuance is gradually becoming more likely.
Preliminary ratings have been assigned to the second non-residential mortgage asset backed securities (ABS) deal of the year, as Capital Finance Australia (Capital Finance) prepares a forthcoming transaction with a launch volume of A$551.2 million (US$582.7 million). Bella Trust No. 2 Series 2011-1 is targeted towards offshore investors with the inclusion of a GBP-denominated tranche.
On May 24, European Investment Bank (EIB) (AAA/Aaa/AAA) priced a new A$500 million (US$527.3 million) 10-year Kangaroo bond. The new transaction extends EIB's maturity profile and is the borrower's first Kangaroo transaction since February when it priced a A$400 million May 2014 tap.
Suncorp Metway (Suncorp) (A+/A1/A+) issued a new A$650 million (US$686.1 million) domestic May 2014 floating rate bond on May 24. It is the second public debt offering from a regional bank this year, and the first in senior unsecured format. The transaction follows a A$200 million lower tier two subordinated issue from Bank of Queensland (BBB+/A2/BB+) on May 5.