HSBC and UBS bonds last of a kind
Two more international banks last week took the opportunity to sell Australian dollar debt, taking advantage of ample liquidity and favourable pricing to raise the funds and swap the proceeds into preferred currencies.UBS, rated A+, sold $1.25 billion in debt. The Swiss bank sold $750 million of three-year bonds and $500 million of three-year floating-rate notes, with both priced to yield 148 basis points more than the swap and bank bill swap rates.HSBC, rated AA, sold $500 million of three-year bonds and priced to yield 93 basis points more than the swap rate.BNP Paribas and Barclays over the two weeks prior sold $2.5 billion in Australian dollar bonds.This run of support from money centre banks for Australian dollar securities may be over for now, assuming that financial markets adopt a cautious stance following the inconclusive election.