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Charts and commentary giving a snapshot of the New Zealand economic situation at the start of 2018.
Charts and commentary giving a snapshot of the Australian economic situation at the start of 2018.
Issue name: NRMBS 2018-1
Sponsor: National Australia Bank
Deal type: residential mortgage-backed securities
Pricing date: 8 February 2018
Settlement date: 15 February 2018
Total deal volume: A$2 billion (US$1.6 billion)
Arranger: National Australia Bank
AusNet Services (AusNet) (A-/A3) launched a new, 10.5-year domestic benchmark deal on 8 February. Indicative price guidance for the forthcoming transaction is 130 basis points area over semi-quarterly swap. Pricing is expected on the day after launch, according to lead managers, ANZ, Commonwealth Bank of Australia, National Australia Bank and Westpac Institutional Bank.
The final part of KangaNews’s exclusive Australasian government-sector issuers roundtable covers the specifics of funding plans – including the outlook for foreign-currency, floating-rate, and green and social securities.
In January 2018, KangaNews invited representatives of Australia’s biggest government-sector funders to a roundtable discussion in Sydney. In the first part of the discussion, the issuers shared insights into the global funding environment, global investor demand and their own ambitions with respect to curve duration.
The New Zealand government-sector bond market is well placed going into 2018, issuers tell KangaNews. A positive economic story and projected lower issuance from the sovereign should support a solid supply-demand dynamic – though issuers say they continue to work hard at investor engagement at home and abroad.
The fact that Australian dollar credit issuance slowed around February’s equity-market correction should not be interpreted as a sign of a market taking flight, intermediaries say. Many issuers are comfortably funded after a busy end to 2017 and January 2018, allowing them to wait until the dust settles on the latest market move. Credit spreads, meanwhile, suggest rationality reigns.
On 7 February, Australian Office of Financial Management (AOFM) revealed the details of its 11th residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) auction, to be held on 22 February 2018. The auction includes five tranches of RMBS with original face value of A$1.2 billion (US$948.8 million), representing the entirety of the AOFM’s remaining RMBS portfolio.
On 7 February, Bluestone Group (Bluestone) announced plans to meet with investors regarding a potential nonconforming residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) transaction under its Sapphire programme. The meetings, to be arranged by Commonwealth Bank of Australia and Macquarie Bank, will take place in the week beginning 12 February.