Consumer ABS

European ABS issuance sold to investors should at most grow only modestly next year, Standard & Poor's said.

ABS related to autos, including deals backed by floorplans and leases, is likely to rise about 6% in volume during 2012, to $80 billion, Standard & Poor's said today. The figure for 2011 through Dec. 1 is $69 billion, according to the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA).

Volkswagen is readying its first auto loan ABS backed by Japanese loans from its Driver program, according to a Reuters report.

Consumer Portfolio Services (CPS) is in the market with CPS Auto Receivables Trust 2011-C worth $119 million.

Navigating the non-agency RMBS market is not an easy task given that the market has seen little primary activity in 2011 and lots of volatility on housing stats.

DBRS has created the position of chief credit officer, Canadian structured finance and appointed Jerry Marriott to this role as of Dec. 1.

Confidence surveys suggest consumer borrowing might be stabilizing as the economy shows signs of recovery, but it remains unlikely to increase in the short run, according to a Moody's Analytics conference call on the outlook for consumer finance.

Toronto-Dominion Bank made an extra payout of $70 million to the previous owners of Chrysler Financial last quarter under an agreement to raise the price of the deal if the auto lender's assets perform better than expected.

The auto ABS market survived the financial crisis relatively unscathed.

With the macroeconomic uncertainty and headline risk still driving the securitization markets as 2012 comes to an end, it is no wonder that investors are looking for assurance before they sail through the uncharted waters of structured investments.