Does BP's Bond Issue Really Signal Imminent Macondo Settlement?

摘要

A fresh bond issue from BP last week was further demonstration that the UK oil major has recovered its cachet with capital markets. But was it, as some thought, also signaling an imminent out-of-court settlement of its Macondo liabilities?BP issued last week ?1.25 billion (US$1.66 billion) of seven-year bonds and ?1.25 billion of four-year bonds, priced respectively at 103 basis points - or bps, with each bp being 0.01 of 1% - over the underlying "mid-swaps" benchmark curve and 78 bps over mid-swaps. With this issue reportedly oversubscribed some three to four times, RBC analysts stated their belief that BP "not only has comfort on liquidity for a potential near-term settlement, but also that the issue of bonds is a sign that negotiations are active and becoming more tangible."