Issuer diversity last week

Issuance in the domestic market did not set any records for volume last week, totalling a respectable A$2.140 billion, but market participants would struggle to remember the last time three Australian companies that were not financial institutions issued bonds in the same week.

And in terms of monthly issuance volumes, a comparable level of property trust, industrial and triple B rated issuance has not been seen since February 2007, July 2006 and March 2007, respectively.

February 2007 saw issuance from Mirvac Group and DB RREEF Trust; Holcim Australia issued the A$250 million of bonds that mature in early August, in July 2006; and it was in March 2007 that Adelaide Bank, as it then was, raised A$550 million for five years at just 35 basis points over bank bills.

There was strong investor demand last week for the three issues too, with all being upsized. Leighton Finance (rated BBB) was the first to price its five-year issue at 400 bps over swap and raised A$230 million when it had been aiming for A$150-200 million.

Dexus Property Group (BBB+) raised A$160 million, after initially seeking A$100 million, for five years at 450 bps over bank bills.

Australian Prime Property Fund (A) raised A$250 million for three years at 340 bps over swap - it had originally sought A$150 million.

As for other issuance, the Australian branch of Rabobank sold A$1.0 billion of three-year floating rate notes on Friday, at a spread of 105 bps to bank bills, and the night before sold A$200 million of Euro medium term notes with an August 2014 maturity.
 
International Finance Corporation added a further A$500 million to the June 2014 line that it opened last month. The top-up was priced at considerably improved levels, coming in at 65 bps over CGS compared with 103 bps originally, and takes outstandings to A$1.25 billion.

And the Australian Office of Financial Management sold a greater than usual A$800 million of May 2013 CGS, at a weighted average yield of 5.02 per cent on Wednesday, receiving sufficient bids to cover the issue 2.8 times. On Friday, A$500 million of May 2021 CGS were sold, at a weighted average yield of 5.79 per cent and with oversubscriptions of 2.4 times.