Hi Maurice, followup on my hot button, Japan, their companies are now enjoying better credit ratings than most nations. You should get some Yen while the getting is good ;0)
markets.scmp.com
Wednesday, October 30, 2002
Denso pays record low interest in bond issue
BLOOMBERG in Tokyo
Denso Corp, one of three Japanese companies with a top credit rating, has sold 100 billion yen (about HK$6.25 billion) in bonds, paying record low interest.
The nation's biggest car-parts maker sold 50 billion yen in 10-year bonds. The 1.11 per cent bonds had been priced to yield six basis points more than government bonds of similar maturity, said a banker at Nomura Holdings, which arranged the sale.
Government bond yields are trading four basis points above a four-year low of 1 per cent due to concern over plans to cut banks' bad loans which will push Japan into recession. The Denso bonds were priced to yield 1.11 per cent, a record low for a Japanese company.
"It's very rare to see a company with a triple-A rating selling bonds," said Hiroshi Masuya of Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Asset Management. "In this sense, the bonds must have been popular even though the spread was tight."
Rating and Investment Information, the country's biggest risk assessment company, has assigned its top credit rating to Denso, its parent Toyota Motor Corp and Takeda Chemical Industries. A higher rating denotes lower default risk, enabling companies to sell debt more cheaply.
Denso also sold 50 billion yen in five-year bonds. The 0.34 per cent bonds were priced to yield five basis points more than comparable maturity government debt.
With about 350 billion yen in cash and securities, Denso did not need to raise funds, said Junichi Yamaki, an analyst at Moody's Investors Service. Selling bonds would enable it to save on interest payments.
Denso last sold bonds in 1998 when it raised 100 billion yen selling five-year debt paying 1.32 per cent interest. These bonds are due in June next year. |
