Emissions reduction and indigenous employment drive Wesfarmers’ SLL
Sustainability-linked loans (SLLs) continue to gain traction in Australia. Wesfarmers is the latest borrower to establish a facility linked to environmental and social goals, which it says are ambitious and will improve its overall credit profile.
Australian securitisation ready for COVID-19 stress test, market participants say
The disruption the accelerating COVID-19 crisis has sparked will test the resilience of the Australian securitisation market, even though risks to credit quality may be limited. Issuers may have to increase their usage of alternative funding options should the public market remain inaccessible for an extended period.
Short-end dynamics open door to SSA Kangaroo taps
As high-grade bonds have rallied globally in response to the COVID-19 crisis, opportunities have emerged in the short end of the Australian dollar basis swap curve.
Illiquidity bites New Zealand credit market
The New Zealand dollar corporate market appears to have battened down the hatches as COVID-19 has impinged on global markets. The specifics of local demand have shielded New Zealand from global volatility on occasion but market participants say the low-rate environment now leaves it more vulnerable to global moves.
RBNZ shares guiding principles for unconventional moves
The Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) has released a paper on the principles that would guide its potential use of unconventional monetary policy tools. There is no specific guidance on how the central bank might combat fallout from COVID-19.