CAPITAL MARKET BORROWING ONLY MODERATE IN FEBRUARY
Borrowing on the international capital
markets rose moderately in February with 25.9 billion dlrs of
medium and long term funds raised, up 1.5 billion from January
and up 3.2 billion from February last year, the Organisation
for Economic Cooperation and Development, OECD, said.
    Borrowing on external bond markets totalled 20.8 billion
dlrs, some 2.8 billion more than in January, the OECD said in
its latest monthly report.
    But the market for floating rate notes (FRNs) saw further
serious difficulties and the volume of new offerings was only
1.4 billion dlrs against a 1986 monthly average of 4.2 billion.
    However, the OECD said, issues of straight bonds and
especially equity-related issues continued at a brisk pace.
    As in January, exchange rate uncertainties had a major
impact on the currency composition of new bond issues, with
issues in dlrs totalling only 6.5 billion against a monthly
average of over 10 billion dlrs in 1986.
    "The share of the U.S. Dollar in total external bond
offerings has fallen below 32 pct this year - the lowest figure
in the present decade," the report said, but added that the
market has absorbed a record volume of yen offerings.
    In the syndicated credit market, the volume of new loans
declined to 3.9 billion dlrs in February from 4.7 billion in
January. Activity on the market for note issuance and other
back-up facilities continued to be particularly subdued with a
total of only 1.2 billion dlrs completed in February, some 500
mln dlrs less than the already depressed figure for January.
    In February, OECD borrowers accounted for some 85 pct of
total borrowing with major borrowers including the U.S. With
4.5 billion dlrs, Japan, 3.1 billion, and France with two
billion, in addition to a one billion dlr refinancing for
electricity board EDF.
 REUTER
