Defaults hold steady at low level, says Fitch
Default rates remain stable at a low level, with the trailing 12-month high yield default rate for April at 1.1%, virtually unchanged from the level seen a month prior.

JP Morgan expects more than $100 billion of rising stars
JP Morgan credit analysts say they expect $105 billion of high yield debt to attain investment grade status in the next two years

Citi prices BlackRock CLO, reports Wall Street Journal
Citi have priced their $407 million CLO with BlackRock

S&P raises chemicals firm to investment grade
Standard & Poor's on Friday upgraded chemicals company Evonik Industries to investment grade, lifting its rating from from BB+ to BBB. 

Default rate continues to decline, says Moody's
Moody's global speculative grade default rate declined again in April, easing to 2.3% from 2.6% a month earlier, and well down from the 9% figure seen a year ago. 

Contenders named for prestigious CLO awards
With excitement about Creditflux’s CLO Manager Awards building to fever pitch, we can now name the 16 firms that rank as finalists in our four “best manager” categories.

Directories publisher looks up 'C' for chapter 11
Puerto Rico-based Caribe Media has become the latest directories publisher to file for chapter 11 bankruptcy, filing papers on Monday in Delaware to enter bankruptcy protection. 

Barclays takes Protium assets back on balance sheet
Barclays has announced that it intends to buy back the equity of Protium, a fund to which it sold $12.3 billion of structured credit assets in 2009

Citi set to price BlackRock CLO in two weeks, says Reuters
A $407 million CLO put together by Citi and BlackRock is expected to price in two weeks time reports Reuters

High yield default rate falls but risks are increasing, says Fitch
Fitch's 12-month trailing high yield default rate declined further in the first quarter of 2011, settling at 1.1% by the end of March

S&P lowers outlook on US financials following sovereign move
Standard & Poor's yesterday lowered its outlook on several government-related entities in the financial sector, following its similar revision of outlook for the US sovereign earlier this week.

Lloyds completes balance sheet CLO after reducing leverage
Lloyds Banking Group’s Gable Funding CLO, which only two weeks back seemed dead in the water, has seemingly been revived after both Fitch and S&P assigned final ratings to the deal.

Post-reinvestment CLOs are amortising fast, finds Wells Fargo
The median factor for a CLO senior note that is within a year of the end of reinvestment now 83%

Miners unearth S&P upgrades thanks to reduced debt levels
Standard & Poors yesterday upgraded three mining companies as favourable market conditions have seen the companies substantially reduce debt.

Loan portfolio managers expect tighter US credit spreads
Loan portfolio managers at banks are more bullish on US credit than European risk, according to a survey by the International Association of Credit Portfolio Managers

CLO investors expect to buy more deals this year, finds Fitch
Some 44% of CLO investors expect to increase their exposure to these vehicles over the next year, according to a survey of just over 100 firms by Fitch Ratings

Steely determination to reduce debt forges upgrade for Evraz
Fitch upgraded steel manufactuer Evraz from B+ to BB- on Friday, reflecting improvements in the firm's capital structure and liquidity position. 

Switch to Indonesian coal miners for spread pick-up, says Barcap
Barclays Capital says that there are good opportunities for investors in Asian high yield bonds, as the market in the region has grown and matured

Asset managers bought 35% of CLOs in 2010, says Citi
Asset management firms were the biggest buyers of CLOs in 2010, according to a recent presentation by officials at Citi