LONDON: The pound on Friday gave back some of the gains it made the day before as investors reassessed whether British Prime Minister Boris Johnson had made any progress in convincing the European Union to renegotiate the Brexit withdrawal agreement.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s comments on Thursday that a solution to the Irish border question post-Brexit could be found before Oct. 31, the deadline for Britain to leave the EU, triggered a sharp rally in the pound.
But many analysts said the comments reflected market positioning rather than any confidence Britain and the EU would renegotiate their agreement to avoid a no-deal Brexit.
“The market is very short and that is naturally going to make the market very sensitive to any news (that makes them think)...have we got this wrong?,” said Jane Foley, a strategist at Rabobank.
“I’ve not read an awful lot into these moves,” she said, adding that thin summer liquidity had exacerbated this week’s volatility.
Sterling fell 0.5% to $1.2197 on Friday, retreating from the 3-week high hit on Thursday.
Versus euro the pound was down 0.4% on the day at 90.770 pence.
Sterling falls as doubts about Brexit backstop hopes grow
Sterling falls as doubts about Brexit backstop hopes grow
- Sterling fell 0.5% to $1.2197 on Friday, retreating from the 3-week high hit on Thursday
- Angela Merkel previously suggested a solution to the Irish border question could be found
Stc Group issues US dollar-denominated sukuk with a total value of $2bn
RIYADH: Stc Group has issued US dollar-denominated sukuk with a total value of $2 billion across two tranches.
The group clarified that the issuance included the offering of $750 million in sukuk with a 5-year maturity at a yield of US Treasury plus 75 basis points, and an issuance of $1.250 billion with a 10-year maturity at a yield of UST plus 90 basis points, according to the Saudi Press Agency.
It noted that the total order book exceeded $8 billion across both tranches, with a coverage rate exceeding 4 times, and participation from over 300 investors in the subscription.
The issuance garnered strong demand from a broad and diverse base of international investors, reflecting solid confidence in the robustness and efficiency of stc Group’s business model and strategy.
This strategy is aimed at strengthening its digital leadership, seizing infrastructure opportunities, enabling massive projects, and contributing to the realization of Vision 2030 objectives, with a focus on achieving sustainable growth based on operational efficiency and maximizing shareholder value.
This issuance enhances stc Group’s access to international capital markets and solidifies investor confidence in the strength of its credit position.
It also supports its strategic role in accelerating the pace of digital transformation in the Kingdom and building a thriving digital economy.
