The 'Adaptation and resilience conference', organised by the Belgian Federal Council  for Sustainable Development together with the Minaraad and the European umbrella organisation EEAC, will take place in Brussels on 23 and 24 April. Themes to be discussed will include: what risks do we face and how can we adapt to climate change? What policy initiatives exist in the EU and member states? How to finance them? What are equitable policies in this area?

Press release from the Belgian Debt Agency:

 

As of the end of March 2024, the federal government debt amounted to EUR 522.771 billion. Federal government debt thus increased by EUR 2.11 billion since February.

In net terms (after deducting placements and securities held in portfolio), the federal government debt increased by EUR 8.10 billion to EUR 500.534 billion.

The net balance to be financed amounted to EUR 8.579 billion in March.

For more details on the issuance and...

Successful syndication of a new 5-year benchmark

 

On April 9, 2024, Belgium issued a new 5-year OLO with a maturity date of October 22, 2029. The OLO 102 has an annual coupon of 2.70% and was issued at a price of 99.953%, carrying the annual cost at 2.711%.

The transaction saw strong participation from the outset, with the order book growing to over EUR 46 billion at closing, prompting the Federal Debt Agency to set the size of the new issue at EUR 7 billion.

The Belgian Debt Agency...

The 2.70% EUR 7 billion OLO102 benchmark issue, maturing 22 October 2029 for the Kingdom of Belgium (rated Aa3/AA/AA-; outlook stable/stable/negative) is now priced.
Issue/Reoffer price 99.953, to yield 2.711%, equivalent to 1 bps below mid swaps.
Payment date 16 April 2024. Short first coupon on 22 October 2024. Listing Brussels.

Belgian law. No XD, no NP. FM2 (with prior consultation with the issuer) applies.
Fees total 12.5 cts.
Reg S Category 1, 144A eligible, CAC, FCA/ICMA...

The Belgian Debt Agency informs that it has accepted bids of Treasury certificates for a total amount of EUR 2.003 billion, distributed into the following lines :

ISIN Code : BE0312795678 - 11/07/2024
Amount taken (EUR billion) : 0.800
Weighted average yield : 3.725%
Bid-to-cover ratio : 2.13

ISIN Code : BE0312799712 - 13/03/2025
Amount taken (EUR billion) : 1.203
Weighted average yield : 3.463%
Bid-to-cover ratio : 1.72

See our Refinitiv page BELG/TC or Bloomberg page BEDA - TC...

The Minister of Finance, Vincent Van Peteghem, announces:

The Kingdom of Belgium intends to issue a new syndicated euro benchmark bond maturing 22/10/2029 (OLO 102) in the near future, subject to market conditions.

BNP Paribas Fortis, Crédit Agricole CIB, J.P. Morgan, NatWest Markets and Société Générale have been mandated as joint bookrunners. All other Primary Dealers will be invited to the syndicate group.

The OLO auction scheduled for 22/04/2024 is cancelled.

The Belgian Debt Agency launched yesterday, its first USD benchmark transaction since 2020. The new USD 1.25 billion benchmark due 10 June 2055 pays an annual coupon of 4.875% and was priced at a spread of 39bps over the 30-year United States’ Government Bond maturing 15 February 2054 (CT30). The re-offer price was 99.325%, bringing the USD yield to 4.921%.

The Debt Agency completely neutralised the exchange risk by swapping the issue into euro. The financing cost after swap was thus also...

The Belgian Debt Agency informs that it has accepted bids of Treasury certificates for a total amount of EUR 2.233 billion, distributed into the following lines :

ISIN Code : BE0312795678 - 11/07/2024
Amount taken (EUR billion) : 0.988
Weighted average yield : 3.765%
Bid-to-cover ratio : 2.12

ISIN Code : BE0312797690 - 07/11/2024
Amount taken (EUR billion) : 1.245
Weighted average yield : 3.608%
Bid-to-cover ratio : 1.70

See our Refinitiv page BELG/TC or Bloomberg page BEDA - TC...

The FAMHP and Sciensano are warning about counterfeit ivermectin tablets that are being used for self-medication against COVID-19. Investigations show that these counterfeit ivermectin tablets are systematically underdosed or seriously contaminated with bacteria. In 2021, a total of 12 529 counterfeit ivermectin tablets originating from postal packages were seized. These tablets are regularly found in postal packages to this day.