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GENERAL Electric Capital Corporation became the first foreign corporate to issue in the Singapore dollar bond market this week with a S$300m ($177m) Deutsche Bank led deal. Priced at par with a semi-annual coupon of 3.75%, the triple-A credit achieved a 75bp spread over government bonds, compared to the 50bp-55bp level paid by the International Finance Corp (IFC) when it launched a similarly sized three year deal last October via Citicorp. Fees totalled 30bp.

* Japanese finance company Credia has completed a rare securitisation of revolving consumer loans through ING Barings. Japanese investors bought the whole ¥30bn issue, rated AAA by Japan Credit Rating Agency. Credia Capital Ltd priced at par, and pays a 2.6% coupon to its four year bullet maturity. ING Barings has arranged an MTN programme for Credia, giving it flexibility to securitise again.

BANGKOK Bank completed the largest ever exchange offering from Asia yesterday (Thursday), raising $259m of much needed Tier 1 capital. Led by Morgan Stanley Dean Witter, the $716.7m exchange by Thailand's largest commercial bank effected a clever means of bolstering the bank's capital ratios at a time when more conventional means of re-capitalisation have been all but closed.

GOLDMAN Sachs this week launched the $220m 'H' share IPO for Shandong International Power Development (SIPD), aiming to defy gloomy market predictions, the demise of Heilongjiang Agriculture's IPO and investors' concerns over China's economy and currency. The US bank had already bolstered its credentials during the week with a $60m placement for leading Hong Kong trading company Li & Fung.

Angola Warburg Dillon Read will wrap up general syndication of the $500m oil contract pre-export financing for Sociedade Nacional de Combustiveis de Angola (Sonangol) at the end of next week. Commitments are to start coming through over the next couple of days.

THE FRENCH government unveiled the first western European privatisation of the year this week, launching the partial privatisation of Air France. Although there are some doubts over the timing of the deal -- given the poor performance and outlook in the airline sector -- and the quality of the company, bankers say its small size and cheap pricing should ensure that it gets away safely.

ARGENTINA is hoping to launch another Brady bond exchange offer as soon as the markets improve, its head of public credit, Federico Molina, revealed this week. The deal, to take Par and Discount bonds held by local pension funds and other institutional investors in Argentina in return for its global bonds due 2017, will be modelled on a similar swap by the government last May, when local funds swapped Pars and Discounts at market prices and with a nominal value of $868.9m for $685.1m of Argentina's 30 year global bonds, due 2027.

China Crédit Lyonnais is in the market with the $74.55m club fundraising for Chengdu Générale des Eaux-Marubeni Waterworks Co, the project vehicle for the Chengdu No 6 Water Plant B BOT Project.

Hong Kong * Mass Transit Railway Corp

Australia Deutsche Bank Australia is arranging a $250m restructuring facility for Pasminco.

THE SHAPE of the euro-denominated bond markets became clearer this week as issuers across the credit spectrum offered liquid transactions and investors began a sustained period of outright buying of securities in the new single currency.

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