Japan’s Fukoku Mutual Life Insurance Co and Jera Co, a power producer, are both kicking off discussions on potential dollar note deals today, according to people with knowledge of the matter.

Korea National Oil Corp is also set to conduct investor meetings and calls this week, while Japan-based trading firm Mitsui & Co hired banks for a potential offering.

The latest moves mark early signs of a global pickup in issuance, as companies aim to lock in some of the tightest credit spreads in decades and as markets enter a typically busy period following a summer lull.

Signals from Federal Reserve (Fed) chair Jerome Powell that the US may cut rates as soon as September are fueling investor risk appetite and lowering Treasury yields, which serve as benchmarks for pricing most corporate dollar debt.

“Corporate balance sheets are broadly in decent shape, particularly compared to sovereign balance sheets,” Omar Slim, co-head of Asia fixed income at PineBridge Investments said.

New deals are “a welcome development from our perspective because the market needs some issuance and the demand is there”.

Spreads on Asian investment-grade dollar bonds tightened to a record low of 60 basis points earlier this month, a Bloomberg index shows.

Prices from traders today showed spreads tightening about 2 basis points, which would bring yield premiums back around record levels.

Issuance in dollars and euros by Asia Pacific borrowers totals about US$306 billion so far this year, or about a 47% jump year-on-year, according to Bloomberg-compiled data, excluding notes with maturities shorter than 18 months.

From late August through September 2024, regional issuers sold more than US$50 billion in dollar and euro notes combined, the data show.