BLBG: Israel to Sell 10-, 30-Year Dollar Bonds Abroad, Ministry Says
Israel plans to offer 10-year and 30-year dollar-denominated debt in foreign markets as the government seeks to benefit from a drop in borrowing costs.
The country aims to raise between $1 billion and $2 billion from the sale, according to Eyal Klein, chief strategist at Israel Brokerage & Investments Ltd. The 10-year notes will be priced at 135 basis points above U.S. Treasuries and the 30-year bonds at 155 basis points over the debt, he said. The Finance Ministry made the announcement in an e-mailed statement today.
Israel sold 10-year dollar debt a year ago, paying 205 basis points over similar-maturity Treasuries, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The yield on the U.S. debt has tumbled 44 basis points, or 0.44 percentage point, to 1.94 percent from last year’s high.
“This is the cheapest ever financing carried out by the government,” Klein said by telephone. “Israel is taking advantage of the fact that U.S. Treasury yields are low. The election results have also contributed to a more optimistic scenario for Israel as investors are happy to see Netanyahu leading another government.”
Last week’s elections gave Benjamin Netanyahu the chance to serve a third term as prime minister. Netanyahu seeks to trim the deficit to 3 percent of economic output this year from 4.2 percent in 2012, requiring 14 billion shekels ($3.8 billion) in spending cuts.
The yield on the government’s 4 percent dollar-denominated bonds due June 2022 rose four basis points to 3 percent at 1:42 p.m. in Tel Aviv, data compiled by Bloomberg show. The country is rated A1 at Moody’s Investors Service, the fifth-highest investment grade.
Barclays Plc (BARC), Citigroup Inc. (C) and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) are the underwriters on the deal.
To contact the reporter on this story: David Wainer in Tel Aviv at dwainer3@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Claudia Maedler at cmaedler@bloomberg.net