Published: May 13, 2009
Syndicated lending to Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa (CEEMEA) has fallen by 78% to just US$18.9bn in 2009, compared with US$87.0bn in the same period last year, according to Dealogic.
Just 40 deals have signed in 2009, the lowest year-to-date total on record. Barclays Capital lead the bookrunner ranking for CEEMEA loans in 2009 YTD with a 9.4% share of the market, followed by BNP Paribas with a 4.3% share.
Average pricing on CEEMEA loans has risen by 148bps to reach a record high 320bps in 2009 YTD while average maturity has fallen to 4 years 8 months, the shortest tenor since 1998 YTD.
The UAE leads the CEEMEA region with US$6.6bn, accounting for 34% of total CEEMEA loan volume, despite a 62% fall in volume from 2008 YTD.
Russia, which last year accounted for a 31% majority of CEEMEA volume, has seen just three deals sign in 2009 YTD for US$1.5bn, down 94% on 2008 YTD and the lowest volume since 2004 YTD.
UAE lenders account for a majority 18% of loan volume to the CEEMEA region in 2009 YTD. UK lenders, which last year accounted for a majority 16% of loans to the region, reduced lending volumes by 76%.
The utility & energy sector is the leading industry for emerging market loans in 2009, despite a 54% fall in volume from 2008 YTD. Eight of the top ten sectors have seen falls of 40% or greater, with the mining sector suffering the greatest fall at -94%.