Lloyds Bank

Utmost International, the life assurance group which mandated leads to run investor meetings for a senior bond in mid-November, may have missed the issuance window this year as the primary market slows to a standstill around the UK's general election.

Yorkshire Water flattened the long end of its sterling bond curve on Tuesday, as investors remain content with UK risk, as long as the Labour Party looks unlikely to win the general election on December 12.

Japan Tobacco and Yorkshire Water have given mandates for new euro and sterling bonds, respectively, as S&P Global says the amount of European corporate debt it rates has grown to €6.44tr.

Nedbank has closed a $500m term loan, while Investec has launched its own syndicated loan, indicating that despite concerns about South Africa’s ratings outlook, its borrowers maintain access to international syndicated loans.

Lloyds Banking Group marketed an additional tier one in the sterling market this week, making use of favourable conditions. The lender was “quite an attractive credit” in an undersupplied market, according to analysts.

Oil major BP and motorbike maker Harley-Davidson both hit the euro bond market on Tuesday, in the wake of the European Central Bank’s far bigger than expected first week of corporate bond purchases.

The Netherlands’ Tennet Holding has increased the size of its bank revolving credit facility to €3bn and linked the margin to sustainability goals, in a deal the electricity transmission system operator says is the largest sustainability-linked revolver in the Benelux region.

Issuers in the financial institutions bond market do not want to see the chance for cheap funding slip, so more are lining up deals. On Monday, Landesbank Hessen-Thüringen (Helaba) mandated leads for a preferred senior bond in euros, and UK insurer Utmost International said it was aiming for an senior unsecured bond in sterling.

Bovis Homes hits debt and equity markets — IAG swoops on €1bn Air Europa — Northern Irish HA sells US private placements in market first

Germany’s Daimler and the UK’s SP Transmission hit the sterling market this week, bringing deals that had to ride waves caused by European Central Bank bond buying and political upheaval in the UK.

UK housebuilder Bovis Homes is heading to the debt and equity markets to finance an agreed £1.075bn acquisition of part of compatriot Galliford Try’s business.

A flurry of new deals this week had issuers having to compete for investors’ attention. Bankers said that higher yielding deals were much easier to sell, with non-preferred senior bonds from Bankia and Lloyds Banking Group proving more popular than a tighter print from Belfius.