New York

INTEL is on track to price a US$7 billion bond to help finance its acquisition of chipmaker Altera after attracting more than US$20 billion in investor demand.

The deal, split across four tranches ranging in maturities from five to 30 years, had been long-expected by market participants. Initially marketed in June to European investors, the company held off announcing the deal until Thursday (Singapore time) because of market volatility.