Apple mulls 1st yen bond in near future, Goldman Sachs says

[TOKYO] Apple Inc may sell a debut yen-denominated bond "in the near future" after hiring banks to arrange investor calls last month, Goldman Sachs Group Inc said.

The iPhone maker will offer the securities subject to market conditions, according to an e-mailed statement from Goldman Sachs on Monday. The investment bank was hired along with Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc for the potential offering, it said on May 1.

Apple has said it is boosting its capital return program by US$70 billion through March 2017 and would be accessing US and international debt markets to help pay for it. A yen bond sale would be the first in the Japanese currency for the company, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

The technology giant is marketing five-year notes at around zero to three basis points more than yen swaps, people familiar with the matter said Monday. It may sell the securities as early as June 4, they said, asking not to be identified because the details are private.

BLOOMBERG