MetLife, PNC, Swedish Export Credit sell high-grade bonds; volume eyed post-holiday

By Cristal Cody

Tupelo, Miss., Aug. 30 – Investment-grade issuance on Thursday included two corporate deals.

Metropolitan Life Global Funding I priced $1 billion of two-year floating-rate notes at the Secured Overnight Financing Rate plus 57 basis points.

The benchmark may be used to replace Libor, which will be phased out by 2021.

Also on Thursday, PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. brought $500 million of three-year senior notes to the primary market.

In SSA supply, Swedish Export Credit Corp. sold $1 billion of two-year global notes.

Week to date, high-grade volume totals $6.75 billion, including $2.5 billion in corporate issuance.

Market sources had predicted up to about $5 billion of high-grade corporate volume for the week.

New issuance is expected to be strong in the week ahead following the Labor Day holiday with $45 billion to $55 billion of supply predicted, according to a BofA Merrill Lynch research note released on Thursday.

High-grade “corporate bond spreads have been flat over the last two weeks – despite a rally in stocks and high yield credit,” analysts said in the note. “What is holding back high grade is mainly concerns about supply volumes after Labor Day.”

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