Bond markets were also in on the action with all geographic regions posting stronger demand month-over-month, driven by renewed interest in high yield bonds (+11%) and sovereign debt (+6%). EMEA markets were marginally up across the board in March with annual inflation eased to 2.2%, coming in lower than estimated and the European Central Bank (ECB) lowered the 3 key interest rates by 25bps, as expected. Germany was the stand-out market with German bonds in favour, following the unveiling of a €500bn infrastructure funding & stimulus package to accommodate increased borrowing and spending, particularly on defense.

Record highs in March closed out a rocky start to the year, but one in which the lending markets were increasingly active. Volatility drives demand for securities finance borrowing as market participants seek new sources of liquidity to fund collateral and cover their positions. Our data is generated by the 130+ firms using NGT daily to generate our newest record high of 170,000+ trades in a single day. While markets are not unfamiliar with volatility following the economic and geopolitical tensions of 2024, the U.S driven volatility of Q1 has had a singular impact on markets. So far April trends appear to support more of the same with elevated levels of trading activity seen across the globe. 

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