Support The Moscow Times!

International Bonds to Range From 5 to 10 Years

The government plans to offer five- and 10- year dollar bonds in its first international debt sale since the 1998 financial crisis, according to three bankers with knowledge of the transaction.

Officials are meeting investors in Los Angeles on Monday, San Francisco on Tuesday and New York on April 21, after covering European and Asian cities last week. The bonds are likely to be priced on April 22 following the meetings, the bankers said.

The government has said it plans to borrow as much as $17.8 billion abroad this year in several installments. It is selling bonds at a time when yields on emerging-market debt are near all-time lows on confidence in the economic recovery and record-low global interest rates. Government officials, including Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin, have indicated that the sale may be less than the official target for 2010 after a surge in commodity prices boosted the economy.

“The five-year maturity will cater more to local Russian banks, while the 10-year is for international accounts,” said Vladimir Gersamia, senior portfolio manager at Fortis Investments, who helps manage $3 billion of emerging-market debt in London. “As long as the deal is between $5 billion and $7 billion, it should do fine. I wish they could have done the 20- year maturity as well, but obviously they didn’t want to oversaturate the market.”

… we have a small favor to ask.

As you may have heard, The Moscow Times, an independent news source for over 30 years, has been unjustly branded as a "foreign agent" by the Russian government. This blatant attempt to silence our voice is a direct assault on the integrity of journalism and the values we hold dear.

We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. Our commitment to providing accurate and unbiased reporting on Russia remains unshaken. But we need your help to continue our critical mission.

Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just 2. It's quick to set up, and you can be confident that you're making a significant impact every month by supporting open, independent journalism. Thank you.

Continue

Read more