Lighter volume forecast in week ahead; new issues trade mostly wider; Bayer, Walmart mixed

By Cristal Cody

Tupelo, Miss., June 22 – Fannie Mae priced $2.5 billion of three-year Benchmark Notes on Friday in what turned into an otherwise quiet session in the investment-grade market.

Looking ahead to the upcoming week, syndicate sources expect pricing action to thin to about $15 billion to $20 billion of volume.

More than $43 billion of high-grade bonds were priced this week, in line with syndicate forecasts of about $35 billion to $50 billion of supply.

The bulk of issuance came from Bayer AG’s $15 billion offering on Monday and Walmart Inc.’s $16 billion transaction on Wednesday.

Most of the new corporate bonds priced during the week widened in the secondary market, a source said.

Bayer’s eight tranches of notes were mixed on Friday.

Walmart’s notes priced in nine tranches on Wednesday traded mostly softer.

New bank and financial paper priced during the week also was mixed in the secondary market.

Royal Bank of Scotland Group plc’s $2 billion of six-year fixed-rate/floating-rate and floating-rate notes brought to the primary market on Wednesday softened about 1 basis point to 5 bps.

The Markit CDX North American Investment Grade 30 index ended mostly unchanged at a spread of 65 bps.

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