Debt Management
Stress tests motivate Moody’s Ireland downgrade
Moody’s downgrades Ireland two notches to Baa3 after stress tests force Irish government to allocate additional funds to banks
Iceland in talks to avoid downgrade following 'no' vote
Governor Már Guðmundsson talks to rating agencies after Icelanders reject second Icesave deal
Greek debt still the most risky: CMA survey
CMA labels Greek sovereign debt as most risky in the world, second quarter in a row; countries elsewhere in Western Europe performed the best
New York Fed auctions off first AIG-related mortgage bonds
New York Federal Reserve sells $1.3 billion of American International Group (AIG) mortgage securities in the first round of auctions
Ireland’s Elderfield: we’ll not haircut senior debt
Matthew Elderfield, Ireland’s head regulator, assures senior bondholders in four banks they will not face “action”
Risk Europe: S&P slammed for linking Greece, Portugal downgrades to ESM
Eurozone bail-out vehicle doesn't hurt existing bondholders, EC official argues
Moody’s downgrades Portugal again
Moody’s cuts Portugal’s credit rating by one notch to Baa1 as political uncertainty continues to cloud medium-term financing
RBNZ paper on global bond yields
Reserve Bank of New Zealand study finds close correlation between domestic and global bond yields
IMF paper urges policymakers to address sovereign rating spillovers
Policymakers must account for risks posed by spillover effects of sovereign rating downgrades; contingency plan recommended to deal with possible instability
Irish minister makes fresh bondholder threat
ECB executive board member critical of Ireland’s plans to impose losses on senior bondholders in Irish lenders; new stress test results on Thursday to develop the governments’ plans
Portuguese CDS spreads climb after austerity measures voted down
The EU prepares itself for another sovereign bail-out after Portuguese parliament rejects tax rises and budget cuts
S&P downgrades Bahrain
Standard and Poor’s downgrades Bahrain’s credit rating two notches to BBB amid continued political unrest
Moody’s Portugal downgrade sparks further speculation of bailout
Moody’s cuts Portugal’s credit rating by two notches to A3 on weaker growth prospects; analyst says bailout expected in coming months
ECB’s Bini Smaghi proposes single eurozone bond issuing agency
European Central Bank executive board member Lorenzo Bini Smaghi backs proposals for single eurozone government bond issuer; says agency could pave the way for a single European bond
Moody’s lowers Greece's credit rating
Greece's credit rating moved from B1 to Ba1 while spreads rise across eurozone periphery
Canada pressed to develop inflation market
Current issuance of inflation-linked bonds is too meagre to meet demand from domestic and international investors, say market participants
Ivory Coast defaults on $2.3 billion eurobond payment
Ivory Coast fails to make January 31 deadline on payment to credit holders; analyst says political situation must be addressed before payment can be made
S&P downgrades Japan
Standard and Poor's downgrades Japan by one notch to AA– on fears that aging population places greater fiscal burden on Tokyo
IMF’s Lipsky calls for major US fiscal consolidation
IMF first deputy managing director, John Lipsky, says measures to ease debt burden in Unites States could have broader benefits for global recovery
New highs for CDS spreads on Ireland and Belgium
The cost of insuring against Irish and Belgian state defaults reaches unprecedented levels
Debt management poses greater refinancing risks: Netherlands Bank
The Netherlands Bank study says greater reliance on short-term debt requires better coordination between debt managers and central banks
SNB rejects Irish debt as collateral
Swiss National Bank excludes Irish sovereign debt and that of some Irish banks from list of collateral eligible for open market operations
Chinese sovereign debt to be issued using HKMA platform
Hong Kong Monetary Authority and China’s finance ministry reach agreement to allow issuance of renminbi bonds using central bank tendering platform
Irish bailout fails to restore faith in PIIGS debt
CDS spreads on peripheral eurozone debt widen despite €90 billion in aid