Bips & Pieces
Nigeria OPEC+ Mandated Production Cut “More Palatable” than Initially Feared
Renaissance Capital analysts Nikolas Stefanou and Alexander Burgansky suggest the headline 23% figure quoted in the OPEC+ agreement excludes condensate production, which makes up a large share of Nigeria’s overall oil output.
17 Apr 2020
ASEAN Green Bond Issuance Jumped 50% in 2019
Across ASEAN, 2019 was a big year for green bonds with issuance rising over 50% to reach a total of USD258bn, according to a report from HSBC and the Climate Bonds Initiative (CBI). But clear disparities remain between countries, with Singapore increasingly dominating the issuance pipeline.
17 Apr 2020
Ecuador Shows Why Investors Should Engage in ‘Consensual’ Solutions to COVID Crisis - Ashmore
Ecuador, like many EM countries, has been shaken by a toxic cocktail of coronavirus, crashing oil prices and restricted access to financial markets. But according to Jan Dehn, Head of Research at Ashmore, Ecuador’s approach to dealing with the crisis – defined by pro-active engagement with creditors – is one others in the market should learn from.
17 Apr 2020
“More to be Done” From Kenyan Government to Buoy Economy – Cytonn Investments
Kenya has so far managed to limit the spread of COVID-19, with just 184 cases and 7 deaths reported as of 10 April 2020, and the government has responded with fiscal and monetary measures to buoy the economy. According to Cytonn Investments, the government’s actions need to go further but the government remains constrained by its fiscal deficit.
16 Apr 2020
Asia is Now the Only Region on Course to Record Growth in 2020
Developed markets are predicted to take the biggest hit as the spread of COVID19 and lockdowns designed to contain it continue to lead to downward revisions to growth, but emerging Asia remains a bright spot.
16 Apr 2020
Investors Cast Aside Oil Concerns and Pile into Petronas Bonds as Orderbook Peaks at USD37bn
Any concerns over the outlook for oil prices were seemingly cast aside this week as investors got their first chance in five years to buy bonds issued by Malaysian state-owned energy giant Petroliam Nasional (Petronas), which raised USD6bn in a triple-tranche offering that priced inside IPTs across the curve.
16 Apr 2020
Emerging Market Debt Outlook Improves as Investors Sharpen Focus on Fundamentals
The asset classes took a battering from the pandemic and related economic turmoil over the past few weeks, but low valuations are looking very inviting at the moment.
16 Apr 2020
Excessive Dollarization, Concentration of Loans to State-Owned Enterprises Key Risks for Uzbek Lenders as Privatisations Loom
Concerns over excessive dollarization and a high concentration of loans to state-owned enterprises, many of which were offered at preferential rates, could weigh on Uzbekistan’s banking sector and throw privatisations into question in the face of record global market turbulence.
16 Apr 2020
Sukuk Issuance to Plummet in 2020 – S&P
A toxic cocktail of low oil prices and widespread disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic looks set to severely inhibit sukuk issuance in 2020, according to a recent report from S&P.
15 Apr 2020
IMF Downgrades Global Growth, Signals ‘Worst Recession Since Great Depression’
The IMF has downgraded its global growth forecast for 2020 by 6.3% in just the span of a few months as lockdowns designed to contain the spread of COVID-19 dampen economic activity and send commodity prices tumbling. The Fund’s Economic Counselor and Research Department Director Gita Gopinath said the impending recession would be the worst since the Great Depression.
15 Apr 2020