Westpac Banking Corporation’s return to the domestic senior benchmark market added A$3.2 billion to the A$2.9 billion printed by National Australia Bank just a few days earlier. While these deal sizes are down on big-four bank domestic records, issuer sources say demand remains strong and high-quality – as evidenced by a substantially oversubscribed book.

A clutch of semi-government issuers accessed the Australian dollar market for syndicated deals in quick succession in the early weeks of 2024. The deals arrived notably earlier for this sector than previous issuance patterns and found plentiful demand, including from offshore accounts.

Semi-government issuers accessed the domestic market in quick succession in the early weeks of 2024. The deals arrived notably earlier for this sector than previous issuance patterns infer and found plentiful demand, including from offshore accounts.

The 2023 Commonwealth Bank of Australia Global Markets Conference brought international investors to Australia at a fascinating juncture for the local economy and the fixed-income asset class. While the general view remains that the central bank hiking cycle is close to played out, the market is also coming to terms with the real consequences of a higher for longer environment. Australia is not fully insulated against cold global winds but it also has reasons for optimism.