"In the 2008 to 2012 cycle, emerging markets were providing the growth dynamic. Now, because you have slightly better growth in the west, it doesn’t mean that all emerging markets are basket cases."
Pravin Gordhan, South Africa’s finance minister, pleads for a dose of common sense amid the emerging market rout
(see South Africa at the centre of the sell-off)
"Since 2012, the challenge for us has been to restore full market access before the end of the bailout programme; that has required attracting at different times, different types of investors best attuned to the price and risk of Portugal"
João Moreira Rato, head of Portugal’s IGCP, has had to plot a debt issuance course to the country’s bailout
(see Portugal set fair to exit the bailout)
"If you have a 100% chance of earning 2p per transaction, times a million transactions a week, every week, 52 weeks a year, for an average of seven years, that is certainly compelling. It may be boring and slow, not as exciting as the large bond deal, nor have the adrenaline rush of booking a once-only, big-ticket transaction, but over time, its stability and sustainability of revenue breeds confidence"
Carole Berndt, head of GTS at RBS, on why boring is the new exciting
(see Corporate treasures: Why cash has become the new trophy mandate)
"The EM corporate universe is becoming more and more like any other corporate universe to the extent companies are capable of issuing debt for growth in a liquid market, in part aimed at boosting shareholder returns."
Hakan Wohlin, global head of debt origination at Deutsche Bank, explains why January was a record month for emerging market hard-currency issuance, despite the EM sell-off
(see Rout-sizing: How will investment banks cope with the emerging market sell-off? )