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Mix-Ansicht- Russen den Carrytrade schmackhaft machen - XERXES, 13.03.2007, 16:16
Russen den Carrytrade schmackhaft machen
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16:13 13Mar2007 RTRS-Japan's Nomura to introduce Russians to cheap yen
By Gleb Bryanski
MOSCOW, March 13 (Reuters) - Japan's Nomura <8604.T> investment bank on Tuesday announced it would move into the fast-growing Russian market and promised to give cash-hungry Russian firms the chance to borrow cheaply in yen.
"As Russian companies expand the availability of funds increases. The yen... as a low interest rate currency is an attractive option," said Christian Thun-Hohenstein, head of Nomura's European investment banking business.
Nomura follows Merrill Lynch and Lehman Brothers as the latest bulge-bracket player to set up shop in Moscow and the Japanese bank says it can offer Russians exposure to an unexplored world of Asian markets.
Seeking cash to finance growth, Russian firms have gone on an international borrowing spree in recent years, issuing Eurobonds worth $65 billion as they took advantage of low U.S. and euro zone interest rates.
"They (the Russian companies) were busy borrowing in euros, busy borrowing in dollars. Now it is a matter of introducing these companies to (Asian) investors and educating the investor base," Thun-Hohenstein said.
Nomura organised a yen-denominated Eurobond issue worth 20 billion yen ($170 million) for Kazakhstan's second-largest bank TuranAlem <BTAS.KZ> in 2006, pioneering yen borrowing in the former Soviet Union.
CARRY TRADES
Faced with rising interest rates and limits on Russian exposure among continental lenders, Russian corporates are looking for new pastures, and Asian markets can offer them a large pool of investors and low-yielding currencies like yen.
Russia's leading consumer lender Russian Standard is considering borrowing in yen, as well as other currencies, while state-run Russian Agricultural Bank had recently borrowed in Swiss francs, another low yielder.
"The dollar used to be the main borrowing currency in Russia but now chief financial officers are looking where the borrowing is more profitable," said Maxim Saltser, the head of Nomura's new Moscow office.
The yen has become a currency of choice for so-called carry trades -- borrowing in low-yielding currencies to buy riskier assets elsewhere.
Although global markets have been shaken of late by the possible unwinding of the yen carry trade, Russia has not been affected much because the low yielding currencies like the yen or Swiss franc are not easily convertible into roubles.
Nomura invested $3.7 billion of Asian investors' money in Russian securities in the last 18 months and wants to be a gateway into Russia for Asian investors.
"Among our investor base in Japan and Asia there is a lot of interest in Russia. We expect this interest to stay in the next few years as Russian economy expands," Thun-Hohenstein said.
Japan accounted for only 1.9 percent of total foreign investment in Russia in 2006, official figures show. Trade between Russia and Japan totalled $13.7 billion in 2006, or just 6 percent of Japan's trade with China.
((Editing by David Cowell; Reuters Moscow; + 7 495 775 12 42, e-mail: gleb.bryanski@reuters.com))
($1=116.83 Yen)
Keywords: NOMURA RUSSIA/
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