Brazil

Latin American DCM bankers hailed Brazilian paper company Klabin’s first sustainability-linked bond (SLB) as an encouraging sign for the ESG debt market in the region, as a huge order book allowed the issuer to tighten by 55bp from initial price thoughts and land well inside its curve.

Bankers said that Brazilian bank BTG Pactual achieved tighter pricing on its green bond than it would have done on a conventional bond, after it became the first Latin American private sector bank to issue such a benchmark in US markets.

Brazilian bank BTG Pactual became the third Latin American issuer to announce plans to issue ESG-related debt this year after it mandated for a potential senior unsecured green bond.

Brazil paper company Klabin began calls with investors on Monday as it looks to become the second Brazilian company to sell a sustainability-linked bond. The size of the potential coupon step-up differs depending on which of three sustainability performance indicators Klabin might fail to meet.

Despite funding stresses in certain Latin American countries, bond markets will continue to help the region with its financing needs. For now, this eases the pressure for reform and fiscal consolidation, but issuers must eventually face up to political and social turbulence. Oliver West reports.

With returns on developed market bonds being squeezed as never before, debt analysts are heralding emerging markets as the place for investors to be in 2021. Yet the faster the global economic recovery, the more vulnerable EM fixed income will be to what has often been its downfall: any signal of tighter global liquidity conditions, write Mariam Meskin and Oliver West.

Latin America primary enjoyed a rare bustling start to December this week with three deals catching the eye for different reasons, despite several market participants saying they were ready for a calmer end to the year.

After monitoring bond markets for several weeks, Brazil took the plunge on a slightly softer day on Wednesday to raise $2.5bn via the reopening of three different notes.

Brazilian steel producer Gerdau will repurchase $300m of dollar bonds with cash as its profits rise thanks to strong demand for steel.

Digital retailer B2W attracted a huge book on its bond market debut on Wednesday, tightening pricing to land just an 0.125% in yield terms wide of its parent company, Brazilian retail giant Lojas Americanas.

B2W Digital, the digital arm of Brazilian retail group Americanas Universe, began investor calls on Monday as it looks to debut in international bond just weeks after its parent company successfully did the same.

Brazilian pulp and paper company Suzano tapped its sustainability-linked notes for a further $500m on Monday, overcoming rating agency concerns about leverage to issue 85bp inside where it originally sold the bonds just two months ago.