Foreign MBS Investors Termed Majority in Spain

Foreign investment in Spain's mortgage-backed and asset-backed securities has increased to the point where investors outside the country now hold the majority of its MBS and ABS, according to Moody's Investors Service."The proportion of both asset- and mortgage-backed securities placed abroad has continued to rise over recent years," the rating agency said in a recent report, adding that investor demand for such bonds is high "because of the historically strong credit quality of Spanish paper." Spain's securitized market may slow slightly this year, given that there have been "signs of a slowdown in the Spanish mortgage market," Moody's said. The rating agency can be found online at http://www.moodys.com.