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* BGB Finance (Ireland) plc Guarantor: Bankgesellschaft Berlin AG, Berliner Bank AG, Landesbank Berlin Girozentrale

DUTCH telecoms operator Koninklijke PTT Nederland this week reopened core European markets for corporates as its DM2bn 10 year transaction demonstrated the tentatively growing appetite for yield across Europe. "This issue really opens the corporate market and signals that euroland is open for business," said an official at ABN Amro, joint books with Warburg Dillon Read.

THE NEW Italian government is expected to decide next week to press ahead with the privatisation of Banca Nazionale del Lavoro (BNL), one of three large sales of financial stocks that have been postponed by continental European vendors in the past few months. The BNL deal was planned for last month, but was delayed because of the negative sentiment in the financial sector and then the political upheaval in Italy culminating in the vote of no confidence against Romano Prodi's government.

* Uruguay and Chile both received the rare honour this week of an actual affirmation of their ratings rather than a warning. S&P affirmed Chile's A- rating and Uruguay's BBB+ rating on the belief that both were in good financial stead to weather the current emerging market storm. * Colombia, facing strong pressure on its currency and having failed repeatedly in recent weeks to issue peso denominated local debt at reasonable rates, has decided instead to offer $200m worth of dollar denominated domestic TES bills between October 28 and the end of 1998.

STRUCTURED Latin American deals are finally being issued in the US private placement market, with Mexican bank Banamex this week completing a $300m four year deal and Pemex now planning between $1bn and $1.5bn of issuance before the end of this year. The BBB+ rated Banamex offering was backed by the future flow of dollar denominated cheques deposited by exporters, with some bankers suggesting it was priced in the 200bp to 300bp region.

Qatar Euroweek hears that Lurgi is tapping its relationship banks to support the $850m loan for National Oil Distribution Company (Nodco) arranged by Barclays Capital.

* The Republic of Romania was this week downgraded for the third time in less than six months, with Standard & Poor's cutting the country's long term foreign currency rating to B- from B+. In late May S&P had already downgraded Romania from BB- to B+ while in September Moody's Investors Service cut its rating for Romania from Ba3 to B1.

LEAD managers CSFB, National Bank of Greece and Salomon Smith Barney are entering the final stages of the privatisation sale of stock of OTE, the Greek national telecoms operator. The deal has suffered from the upheaval in global financial markets as dedicated emerging market equity buyers' funds have been depleted. Despite some market scepticism, the deal now looks in good shape as the bookrunners prepare to lead the company to one last round of investor presentations. Salesmen are avoiding making any commitments on how much the book is likely to be covered -- an understandable reaction given this is the least popular form of offering in the current market: a secondary sale of liquid stock.

THE SULTANATE of Oman is returning to the international syndicated loan market with a $300m five year credit facility. Gulf International Bank has won the role of co-ordinator and will, over the next few weeks, appoint a club of arrangers.

GENERAL syndication of the extremely popular £2.4bn credit facility for PowerGen Finance has closed. Arrangers Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs and HSBC report that the retail was a complete blow-out, matching the success of the sub-underwriting phase. In syndication senior managers were offered 15bp for £50m commitments and managers 10bp for £30m commitments.

CAZENOVE, Dresdner Kleinwort Benson and Robert Fleming have launched the sale of stock in SanLam, the South African life assurer, and are already reporting a good response from investors attracted by a high quality name from a region that has not offered many stocks to foreign buyers. "Despite the emerging market crisis, some companies will always inspire buyers. The chance to get SanLam stock at a fair price is likely to prove irresistible to investors," said one equity salesman.