The last week of the third quarter saw $148 million raised from seven issues. Equity issuance in the first nine months of 2008 reached $55.1 billion from 619 deals, down 55% from the $122.5 billion raised in the same period last year. It was also the lowest nine-month volume in the region since 2004, when $54.1 billion was raised from 912 issues.
Citi caps off the first nine months at the top of the league table ranking with $4.7 billion, up from fifth place in the first nine months of 2007. UBS and Credit Suisse follow with $3.9 billion and $3.7 billion, having moved up from third and seventh place in 2007 respectively. Morgan Stanley, which ranked first in the January to September period in 2007, finishes the quarter in fourth place with $3.3 billion.
Third quarter activity of $8.3 billion was the lowest quarterly result in over five years (volumes reached $8.2 billion in the second quarter 2003), while the deal flow of 169 issues was the lowest level since the first quarter of 2003 (156 issues). The biggest deal in the third quarter 2008 was China South Locomotive & Rolling StockÆs $1.6 billion dual-listing IPO in August, bookrun by China International Capital Corp, Macquarie Group and Industrial Securities.
Asia ex-Japan issuance accounted for 11% of global ECM activity in the first nine months of 2008, down from 19% in the same period last year. Global volumes (excluding the largely closed China A-Share and Saudi markets) fell 19% to $524.4 billion in the first nine months.
Deals scheduled to price next week include Hindalco IndustriesÆ $1.2 billion follow-on offering via Citi, Deutsche Bank, Merrill Lynch and Royal Bank of Scotland; and a $598 million IPO for Renhe Commercial Holdings via Bank of China International, HSBC, Morgan Stanley and UBS.
Debt Capital Markets
The debt capital markets saw a quiet finish to the quarter with zero trades for the third week in a row. The volume for the first nine months stood at $16.5 billion from 56 trades, less than half of the $33.3 billion raised in the same period last year.
HSBC tops the league table ranking for the nine-month period with $2.6 billion, a jump from sixth place in the first nine months of 2007. Barclays Capital is just behind in second place with $2.5 billion (from seventh last year), while Deutsche Bank rounds out the top three on $2.2 billion (from first place last year).
Third quarter volume of $2.3 billion dropped to the lowest quarterly level in seven years (volumes reached $1.4 billion the third quarter 2001), while the deal flow of 11 trades was the slowest since the fourth quarter, 2000 (six deals). HSBC and Morgan Stanley printed the biggest trade in the third quarter of 2008 û the $1 billion bond for HKCG (Finance) in July.
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