BEWARE OF THE BEAR
It had to come. The Eurobond market had been living on Easy Street
for four years. For the last 18 months it had been in a state of
euphoria. The steady slide in interest rates meant that for most
players it was difficult to lose money. Whether a bond was mispriced,
an issuing house lacked placing power or its dealers proved incapable of
staying in tune with the market, just hanging on to paper usually
produced healthy profits.
For the young traders, many of whom were recruited into the booming
market straight from college, the experience has been dreamlike. But as
they climb into their Porsches and BMWs at the end of the day, many are
beginning to get a nagging feeling that their luck may have just run
out.
After a first quarter which presented some Euro-houses with greater
profits than for the whole...
