The Credit Edge by Bloomberg Intelligence

Robust demand from pensions and insurance companies will support corporate debt through macroeconomic headwinds and record supply, according to Goldman Sachs. “Spreads are tight to the prewar levels when the facts on the ground have unquestionably become more challenging,” Amanda Lynam, Goldman’s chief credit strategist, tells Bloomberg News’ James Crombie and Bloomberg Intelligence’s Robert Schiffman in the latest Credit Edge podcast. “That is this uncomfortable tension that we have in the credit market,” Lynam says. “Sentiment around the yield-based buyer is really in the driver’s seat.” They also discuss the AI funding boom, private-credit risks, CCC underperformance and where to find value in structured products.
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Bad software loans will cause credit-market trouble that recalls aspects of the global financial crisis, according to American Century Investments. “We call it max uncertainty with max complacency,” says Paul Norris, referring to tight credit spreads, in this episode of the Credit Edge podcast. “What’s interesting to me is the subprime crisis was very similar,” Norris, who leads the $330 billion asset manager’s securitized markets team, tells Bloomberg News’ James Crombie and Bloomberg Intelligence’s Reto Bachmann. They also discuss growing risks to business development companies and collateralized loan obligations, advantages of public over private asset-backed debt and why residential mortgages are a buy.

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Blue-chip companies, including hyperscalers, may be jeopardizing their credit ratings by piling on debt, according to Principal Asset Management. “We have seen some downgrades, and I would expect that that would continue as borrowing ramps up,” Mike Goosay, the $600 billion manager’s global head of fixed income, tells Bloomberg News’ James Crombie and Bloomberg Intelligence’s Julie Hung on the latest Credit Edge podcast. “I don’t think that’ll have a behavioral effect on the way that investors look at the market, nor does it — to date, anyway — change the borrowing costs of those corporates,” he adds. They also discuss the artificial-intelligence funding frenzy, why junk bonds are attractive despite macroeconomic risks and how global government-bond volatility affects demand for credit.
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Loose underwriting standards are increasingly troubling for private credit market participants, according to Bloomberg Intelligence. “This concern has been growing for a period of time,” David Havens, BI’s senior analyst for private credit, tells Bloomberg News’ James Crombie in this special episode of the Credit Edge podcast. Weak underwriting discipline was flagged by private debt market participants in a recent global BI survey, rising in prominence compared with a poll conducted in September. In addition, direct lenders face lingering pressure from retail redemptions at business development companies. “Headlines are still going to be negative, focused on that very small portion of the market — it’s becoming slightly infectious and weighing on the wealth side of the business,” says Paul Gulberg, a senior analyst who covers global banks and asset managers. The trio also discuss the drivers of private credit growth, loan valuations, the liquidity premium and fund fees.
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JPMorgan Asset Management sees value in the debt of companies building out AI, but it’s keeping a close eye on how much more they plan to spend next year. “If we’re seeing capex increase at the same rate that we saw 2025 to 2026, I think that’s probably a little bit of a red flag,” Stephanie Doyle, a portfolio manager at the $4.3 trillion firm, tells Bloomberg News’ James Crombie and Bloomberg Intelligence’s Arnold Kakuda in this episode of the Credit Edge podcast. “I think the issuance is an opportunity,” said Doyle, who’s part of the money manager’s global fixed income, currency and commodities team. They also discuss the potential for credit spreads to tighten, rising net new bond issuance, the earnings outlook and growing macro risks.
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