Australia's Leighton prices $280 mln bond-sources

SYDNEY, Sept 19 (Reuters) - Leighton Holdings Ltd (LEI.AX),
Australia's top engineering contractor, has priced a bond issue
of US$280 million in the U.S. traditional private placement
market, two market sources said.

The offer consisted of five-, seven- and 10-year notes, all
with a margin of 400 basis points over U.S. Treasuries.

HSBC and Royal Bank of Scotland jointly led the issue which
priced last week, before the latest worsening in the global
financial crisis, the sources said.

HSBC was not immediately available to comment, while RBS
declined to comment.

Leighton said the company never comments on speculation.
Leighton added it looks at its capital structure at all times.

The contractor is already seeking A$450 million in a
three-year loan arranged by Australia & New Zealand Banking
Corp, Commonwealth Bank of Australia and National Australia
Bank, acording to Basis Point.

The loan pays 130 basis points over the bank bill benchmark
called BBSY. Leighton is rated BBB by S&P.

The U.S. private placement market is a popular source of
funds for Australian companies looking for long-dated debt.

Typical buyers of private placements are U.S. insurance
companies keen on long-dated paper to match their liabilities.

Eight Australian companies, including Leighton, have raised
close to $2 billion so far this year and more is expected.

Logistics firm Brambles, fertiliser group Incitec Pivot
(IPL.AX) and metals recycler Sims Group (SGM.AX) are also
considering similar moves.

Since insurers tend to buy and hold the debt for the long
term, the placement market is much less susceptible to the
volatility that has racked other debt markets.

(Reporting by Cecile Lefort)