Focus is being drawn away from the US CLO secondary market, but it remains active.

“The momentum is really with new issues, resets and refis at the moment,” says one trader. “Secondary has been relatively busy this month, but primary is the main focus.”

The trader continues: “It’s still a premium market with lower bids still generating DNTs, but there is softness especially around double- and single-As. At the same time, people aren’t paying up in shorter duration paper because they are picking up spread in longer duration and new issue and so the curve has flattened.”

The trader highlights a single-A BWIC on Tuesday as the chief talking point of the week. “It saw prints in the mid to low 200s to the call, which is even wider than new issue. That said, the list did involve some lumpy deals and not the most favoured managers."

Overall, March's BWIC activity has been up on recent months, the trader notes. “We’re seeing rotation into new issue, but there’s been macro vol too, so some people are taking chips off the table as well. Sellers are coming from a handful of different profiles – not just hedge funds but also insurers, money managers and so on.”

Thanks to month-end and the market’s close tomorrow, there is currently only one BWIC on today’s US CLO calendar. Due at 11:30 New York time it amounts to $10.21m of original face over 20 line items – 18 triple-As and two double-As.

The auction comprises: APID 2013-16A A1R; BLUEM 2013-1A A1R; BLUEM 2015-3A A1; CRNPT 2013-2A A1LR; HLA 2012-1X A2; HLA 2014-1A A1R; HLA 2015-2A A; JTWN 2016-9A A1A; LCM 16A AR; MDPK 2013-11A AR; OCP 2014-5A A1R; OCP 2016-12A A1; OCTLF 2014-1A A1R; SHACK 2016-9A A; SYMP 2007-5A A2; SYMP 2012-8A AR; TPCLO 2013-1A A1; VENTR 2007-8A; VENTR 2014-17A AR; and VOYA 2014-4A A1R.

Six of the bonds have covered with a price on PriceABS in the past three months: CRNPT 2013-2A A1LR at 100.015 on 06 February; HLA 2015-2A A at L100H on 22 February; MDPK 2013-11A AR at 100.21 on 21 February; OCP 2016-12A A1 at 100.4 on 12 March; SHACK 2016-9A A at 100.612 on 22 March; and VENTR 2014-17A AR at 100.04 on 21 February.