(Bloomberg) -- After the slowest December in 23 years, U.S. corporate bond issuers will wait at least another day before tapping debt markets.
Investment-grade borrowers broke with precedent from the last two years and won't sell bonds to start the new year. They issued $7.4 billion last year and $20 billion in 2017.
The higher cost for borrowers and volatile global markets may be what's sidelining issuers. High-grade credit spreads ended Monday at the highest since July 2016.
Companies borrowed less than $8 billion of investment-grade debt in December, the least since 1995. There were no bonds issued in the high-yield market last month.
The weak start to the year isn't too unusual. In 2016, no company sold high-grade bonds on the first trading day following the holiday. But the next day almost $26 billion priced. Issuers waited two sessions in 2015 before selling $13 billion of debt.
Read more: Corporate Bonds Set for Worst Yearly Loss Since Financial Crisis
--With assistance from Allan Lopez.
To contact the reporter on this story: Brian Smith in New York at bsmith373@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Christopher DeReza at cdereza1@bloomberg.net, Randall Jensen
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