In a year that saw many natural disasters but fewer than usual man-made ones, and when few corporate scandals dominated the headlines and the global economy began to look up, markets that saw enormous flux in 2002 began to stabilise. Steady deal flow characterised the bond markets for investment-grade issuers, and both sterling and euro issues showed their attraction. Most other markets improved. Equity-linked issuance soared, as companies took advantage of low interest rates and the promise of a future recovery in equity to pull in investors hungry for new paper to fill the void created by the lagging equity markets.
