The long and winding road to debt relief

To say Zambia has had a convoluted route to get to its debt restructuring is something of an understatement. But it has made major progress this week and the deal it has arrived at with bondholders could be a sign of things to come for the many other emerging market countries negotiating debt relief. We delve into the new debt package and assess its pros and cons.

Meanwhile, at the other end of the credit spectrum, we take a look at the dilemma facing covered bond issuers for the month ahead. Their travails are emblematic of those facing funding officials in all corners of the bond market — whether or not taking the opportunity to issue now will be a smart move to get ahead of the pack in January.

We also look into a new index for the covered bond market from JP Morgan and ask if it solves the problem it means to and whether it will be widely adopted.