The sale follows an intensive series of meetings between senior Finance Ministry officials and foreign investors in London, Paris, Munich and Frankfurt.
By EYTAN HALONUpdated: JANUARY 11, 2019 03:27Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his wife Sara Netanyahu at the opening of the London stock exchange (photo credit: KOBI GIDEON/GPO)
The Finance Ministry raised a record €2.5 billion ($2.88b.) from the sale of government bonds abroad, it announced on Wednesday.The dual-tranche bond issue in London, the country’s largest in international markets to date, was the subject of peak demand worth some €15b. ($17.3b.), the ministry said.The government’s 10-year €1.25b. bond offers an interest rate of 1.5% and the 30-year €1.25b. bond offers an interest rate of 2.5%. This is the first time that the government has issued a 30-year euro bond, and is one of only a few non-European countries to have done so.The 10-year bond was issued at 75 basis points above mid-swaps, and the 30-year bond at 115bps above mid-swaps.“The Israeli economy is enjoying excellent years of high growth, full employment and a low debt-to-GDP ratio,” said Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon.“This successful offering is an expression of confidence in the Israeli economy by international financial institutions, and is further proof of global recognition of Israel’s responsibly-managed economy. I congratulate the accountant-general and his team on this success and I am certain there are many more successes yet to come.”The sale follows an intensive series of meetings between senior Finance Ministry officials and foreign investors in London, Paris, Munich and Frankfurt. Some 300 investors from approximately 30 countries, including Great Britain, Germany and France, invested in the bonds.“The success of the offering, as can be seen in the scale of the demand and low margins, stems from the strength of the Israeli economy, which also led to the State of Israel’s rise in credit rating last summer,” said Accountant-General Rony Hizkiyahu.“The long bonds – a set for 10 years and a set for 30 years issued for the first time in euros – attests to the confidence of foreign investors in the Israeli economy,” he said.The latest sale is the seventh Israeli government issue of euro bonds, with the last offering taking place in January 2017.The issuing is in accordance, the ministry said, with the working plan of the Accountant-General Division, which aims to diversify financing channels of government debt and widen the investor base.
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