Largarde snowballs puncture complacent calm and shocks spreads wider
Credit markets are ending the week on a big push wider, after European Central Bank chief Christine Lagarde delivered the surprise that had been missing from other central bank messaging

Major fund withdrawals undermine credit momentum
Credit funds are extending their run of inflows into the end of the year, but investment grade momentum took a dent last week due to investors in one big fund pulling their money

Rebuke for optimism as US jobs send market bulls running for cover
Investors’ determination to maintain an optimistic outlook on US Federal Reserve policy hit a point of reckoning on Friday, with hot US jobs numbers adding weight to committee members’ message that there is still a lot more work for them to do

Powell outlook brings risk buyers out in droves, but reality check looks soon to follow
Comments by US Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell on Wednesday on the pace of future rate hikes have prompted a sharp rally across global financial markets, including credit. But dissenting voices have already begun to point out the enthusiasm is likely overdone

Credit Suisse tests investor nerves as market preps for Fed-focused week
Credit Suisse, which has been subjected to another week of intense scrutiny, is heading into the weekend with its credit spreads extending wider, after warning on losses and undertaking a capital hike

Swiss bank looks to plug holes but investors are hun-gruyere for risk
Credit Suisse is a rare, worrisome cloud in an otherwise brightening sky this week, as Europe extends its tightening trend in credit with the US standing at ease for the Thanksgiving holiday

Outsized corporate rally puts financials RV in focus
The week is ending with resumption of credit’s recent rally after a brief pause, and Europe once again taking the lead over the US

European outperformance creates index options trading mismatch: Barclays
The recent outperformance of European credit over US has shifted the value of iTraxx index options, but CDX index volatility premiums stand out for having hit a new low

Soft mood music abruptly dashed as Fed and BoE rile markets
The credit market’s strong run of improvement has come to an end this week, with the US Federal Reserve and Bank of England delivering a reality check to hopes of a more dovish path forward on interest rates

Credit pivots sharply as US returns to growth and ECB confirms record hiking cycle
After a wider start, credit markets reversed course Thursday having digested a strong US GDP reading and the European Central Bank lifting its base rate by 75bp – a move that confirms this as the region’s most aggressive ever hiking cycle

"Ugly" eurozone inflation numbers cap off torrid week for credit
Credit spreads are heading tighter into the weekend, as investors rebalance positions against a backdrop of easing currency pressures but a challenging array of European inflation numbers and a highly charged Brazilian election month about to kick off

Investors nurse wounds after UK scuppers credit expectations
Financial markets are picking up the pieces on Thursday following an extremely volatile session ignited in large part by UK economic mishap, which sparked fears of a financial crisis and necessitated the central bank’s intervention

Down in the hole: investors hedge their bets ahead of pivotal Powell
Credit spreads are shifting wider on Friday, after an initial improvement, as investors try to balance positions ahead of what could be a pivotal speech by US Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell

Spreads gap wider with UK inflation adding to cocktail of concerns
Evidence of financial markets hitting a resistance point after three weeks of improvement is growing, with Monday’s bearish shift extending over into early trading Tuesday

Relief rally extends despite US and EU sending mixed signals on recession
Growth and inflation data on Friday has added impetus for the European Central Bank to maintain a hawkish stance at its September meeting, despite US signals suggesting that economy is in recession

Italian rout gathers pace as credit relationships warp well beyond historical norms
Renewed selling pressure on Thursday has taken credit spreads back towards the year’s wides, with financial borrowers underperforming as Chinese covid cases, US inflation and a drought in Italy all weigh on sentiment

Go long duration in consumers and industrials: BofA
The year’s wides still lie ahead in the second half, but China reopening is bullish for consumer and industrial spreads and investors should extend duration in high-quality credit, according to Bank of America strategists

EU inflation prints frame challenge ahead as horror show first half ends
Financial markets are heading into the weekend with a rare stationary session, but the mood is more one of shellshock than considered positioning, after one of the worst first halves to a year on record

Europe trades heavier than US as market baulks at new hikes
Credit spreads have resumed their push wider, with European indices once again under more pressure than their US counterparts

Market jitters mount as US delivers May CPI
Credit spreads have moved sharply wider for the fourth day straight as investors digested the European Central Bank’s hawkish turn and watched with trepidation for the US to reveal its May consumer price index numbers

Russia oil ban accord unites markets in sell off
EU leaders’ compromise agreement on banning Russian oil imports by sea has presented a united front few may have thought possible only days ago. But financial markets have not reacted positively, with risk assets selling off as the euro slumps and oil hits its highest level since March

Loans will be winners in bearish year for credit: BNP Paribas
Floating rate loans are best positioned for a year of widening credit spreads, but high yield bonds will outperform investment grade and EM credit is set for losses, says BNP Paribas in its 2022 outlook

Credit bull run falters as central bank glow abates
Thoughts that the credit market had taken a positive directional shift are turning, after Tuesday’s session has brought a sizeable retracement wider, but credit strategists predict an overall firming of tone into the end of the year off the back of dovish central bank meetings

It's a-live! AI platform launch puts US ratings in spotlight
RoboR8, a fintech platform that aims to democratise credit ratings through artificial intelligence, has launched and hopes to rate 50,000 companies by the end of December, before building to several million in 2022.

Robots rise for credit ratings
A fintech platform is launching this month that aims to use artificial intelligence to democratise credit ratings.