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Australian forestry company Timbercorp this week used Commonwealth Bank of Australia's asset backed commercial paper programme to launch an innovative deal refinancing loans backed by eucalyptus trees. Although a number of deals backed by timber have been closed in the US, this is the first time that the technique has been used in Australia or Asia.

Premature reports surfaced this week that CNOOC will price its forthcoming IPO at HK$7 per share to raise around HK$11.5bn. Lead managers BOCI International, Credit Suisse First Boston and Merrill Lynch could not confirm the reports, saying that the price range would be set later this week. However, they said the issue has been well received in premarketing. The company is selling 1.64bn shares, of which 200m are secondary shares. There is also a greenshoe of up to 13.17% of the offer.

Australia Bank of Queensland was roadshowing a floating rate note for $100m in Asia this week. The bank is launching the deal in order to refinance a euro medium term note issue that matures in late February.

Hong Kong Li Ka-shing this week confirmed to the press that his listed companies would not be buying into Pacific Century CyberWorks (PCCW). This came as a relief to followers of Cheung Kong and Hutchison Whampoa. Some had feared that Li might use his estimated $25bn war chest to take up some or all of the stake that Cable & Wireless wants to dispose of, now that a lock-up period has expired. C&W is allowed to sell 7.5% of PCCW from February 17.

ORIX New Zealand Ltd, the wholly owned subsidiary of ORIX Australia Ltd, is preparing to issue the first securitisation in Australia or New Zealand to be backed by the residual value and maintenance risk of auto operating leases. Lead managed by Macquarie Finance and arranged by Macquarie Bank, the deal will raise NZ$98.4m through four tranches of floating rate notes. The transaction is expected to close on February 15.

UK water regulator Ofwat this week conditionally approved the wholly debt financed acquisition of Welsh Water by Glas Cymru, paving the way for the Welsh not-for-profit entity to approach the bond markets for over £1bn. However, the director general of water services, Philip Fletcher, made it clear that other water companies examining ways of exiting the industry via a zero equity structure, such as Kelda and Anglian Water, should not view the decision as a green light for a restructuring of the whole sector.

Freddie Mac took another step towards US Treasuries this week when it announced that its forthcoming Dutch auction sale of a $5bn three year Reference Note issue will have when-issued trading status. So far, nearly 100 investors have registered to take part and Freddie Mac described the list as "a veritable Who's Who" of investors. Freddie Mac's March 15, 2031 Reference Note issue will also be reopened for $1bn on February 13, but as one head of agencies remarked, the auction "is the issue of the day - the bulge bracket firms are quite outraged".

GMAC stormed the euro market this week with a Eu4bn five year transaction, amassing an impressive Eu10.25bn order book with neither a punitive new issue premium nor the benefit of a long premarketing process. The volume of orders took the issuer and lead managers Barclays Capital, BNP Paribas and Deutsche Bank by surprise. GMAC's initial plans were for a Eu1bn-Eu2bn issue.

GMAC stormed the euro market this week with a Eu4bn five year transaction, amassing an impressive Eu10.25bn order book with neither a punitive new issue premium nor the benefit of a long premarketing process. The volume of orders took the issuer and lead managers Barclays Capital, BNP Paribas and Deutsche Bank by surprise. GMAC's initial plans were for a Eu1bn-Eu2bn issue.

Two car manufacturers have been involved in the three-year sector. GMAC did a ¥1.5 billion ($12.78 million) note that pays interest of 1%. And Toyota Motor Finance did a $50 million trade that pays its coupons semi-annually. The trades take the total issuance for the year so far in the automotive industry to almost $10 billion. Deutsche Bank leads the bookrunner table for automotive issuance, according to MTNWare.

The US Federal Reserve's decision to cut interest rates for the second time in a month gave a lift to debt markets this week, fuelling investor appetite and creating a sharp contraction in corporate spreads. Following a 50bp cut on January 3, the Fed's decision on Wednesday to shave off a further 50bp allayed fears of a US economic slowdown and fired optimism in the corporate market on both sides of the Atlantic.

Iberdrola continues its funding spree. The Spanish utility, after remaining silent for the entire second half of 2000, has sold its fourth trade of the year. Like its two most recent trades, its latest foray is a euro-denominated two-year deal. The euro40 million ($37.4 million) note pays an annual coupon of 4.835% and matures February 6 2003.