Credit traders’ kickstand: primary market flood gives basis for relative value
A deluge of investment grade bond supply in the first two weeks of the year has weighed on the spread basis between the cash market and CDS, leaving opportunities for traders who believe this dislocation should correct over the coming weeks

Oil supply concerns grease CDS relative value trade
With credit spreads having begun 2020 circling post-crisis tight prints, there is not much room across the market for improvement and plenty of susceptibility to jitters. But at least one CDS index shows scope to narrow further and could form part of a relative value trade

CSO arrangers look to build on $65bn of issuance in 2019
The synthetic bespoke tranche market this year has fallen short of expectations in terms of overall issuance volume, but ends with transformative inroads being made.

No 2020 recession, cyclical bonds will outperform and CLOs won't crash, says BNP Paribas
There will not be a recession in 2020 and investors should stay long credit with the expectation that high yield cyclical and non-financial borrowers will outperform in a bullish market, BNP Paribas strategists have confidently predicted

Political risk puts December in focus as CDS investors play index volatility
Selling implied volatility has been prominent among CDS investors since last month’s iTraxx and CDX index rolls, says BNP Paribas in a research piece, with December a popular point of focus for trades

Arrival of five-year bespokes draws in CLO investors
Synthetic bespoke tranches are undergoing a major shift, with dealers projecting five-year business to supersede previously dominant shorter tenors by the end of 2019.

Credit traders' kickstand: Trump gives Europe the ghoulies as single B spectres haunt CLOs
Trade tariff terrors and things that go triple C rated in the night are top of the list of items spooking credit market sentiment at the end of this week

Bespoke gains pull CLO buyers as market tipped to hit $100bn
Synthetic bespoke issuance could catch up with the more visible CLO market this year, say structured credit specialists

Triple B fightback has begun, says BNP Paribas
Fallen angel risk – the possibility that a wave of triple B credits could be cut by rating agencies to sub-investment grade – should begin to decline, according to strategists at BNP Paribas

Credit spread improvement is calm before the storm, warn strategists
European and US credit markets have begun 2019 with a more buoyant tone than they ended 2018, but strategists warn that bearish factors still outweigh and suggest the overall direction of spreads this year is likely to be wider

JP Morgan makes big hire to its global credit trading desk
An experienced banker who has covered CLOs, CSOs, loan TRS and credit derivatives, has joined JP Morgan after leaving BNP Paribas 

Cash-CDS basis set for comeback after "falling knife" mishap, predicts BNP Paribas
The beginning of 2019 should revive interest among credit investors to trade the basis between cash bonds and credit default swaps, according to BNP Paribas strategists – following what they term “falling knife” dynamics in this year’s fourth quarter

Dealers show appetite to retain tranches amid CSO growth
There are increasing numbers of dealers involved in the CSO market and their approach to issuing bespokes is evolving, attendees at Creditflux’s Credit Dimensions conference heard last month.

BNP Paribas hires global credit strategy head
BNP Paribas has appointed a global head of credit strategy and desk analysts.

LCH expands into US with CDSClear as JP Morgan goes live
CDSClear, the Paris-based credit default swap clearing house of LCH, has expanded its reach into the US with JP Morgan becoming the first US bank to offer client clearing

Structured credit specialist swaps CSOs for CLOs as he returns to Morgan Stanley
Morgan Stanley has added to its CLO structuring team in New York, bringing an official who has been working on synthetic CDOs

New tailored credit index tranches draw in private bank investors
A new product aimed at private banks is quietly taking off in the synthetic structured credit space

BNP Paribas pushes Isda to act as Noble triggers CDS uncertainty
BNP Paribas has pressed Isda to take action as Asian credit derivative markets grapple with a messy default by Hong Kong-based Noble Group

Former BNP credit structurer resurfaces at Nomura
Former BNP Paribas credit derivatives structurer Benjamin Hammond has resurfaced at Nomura, according to web postings