High-grade market quiet after strong supply; steady volume forecast; Citigroup, IHS firm

By Cristal Cody

Tupelo, Miss., July 20 – Activity in the high-grade bond markets quieted on Friday following more than $33 billion of issuance over the week.

Bank and financial supply dominated the primary market with new paper from companies including Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Inc., JPMorgan Chase & Co., Wells Fargo Bank NA, Citibank, NA, Bank of America Corp., U.S. Bank NA and M&T Bank Corp.

Looking ahead to the upcoming week, about $20 billion to $25 billion of investment-grade bonds are expected to print, according to syndicate sources.

In the secondary market, new issues were trading mostly better.

Bank paper was trading flat to as much 10 basis points tighter on Friday.

Citigroup Inc.’s $2.5 billion of 30-year notes priced at the start of the week improved 10 bps in the secondary market.

In other secondary trading, IHS Markit Ltd.’s $1.25 billion of senior notes priced in two tranches on Thursday firmed about 5 bps to 9 bps.

The Markit CDX North American Investment Grade 30 index ended mostly unchanged on the day at a spread of 62 bps.

For the week ended July 18, Lipper US Fund Flows reported inflows of $2.02 billion for corporate investment-grade funds, up from $814 million of reported inflows in the prior week.

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