U.S. CMBS private label and commercial real estate (CRE) collateralized loan obligation (CLO) issuance slowed in April as government tariffs and economic uncertainty moved issuers and investors to the sidelines. When news on tariffs hit at the start of the month, seven deals (approximately $7 billion) that KBRA was expecting to rate in April were subsequently paused. Since then, most of these transactions appear to be moving forward again. Across the entire market, seven deals ($3.3 billion) were priced in April compared to 14 ($10.3 billion) in March. However, year-over-year (YoY) issuance, based on a strong first quarter, was higher by 68.4%. The pace of issuance is picking back up again, and, based on our current visibility, up to 13 deals could price in May, including five single borrower (SB), five conduits, two CRE CLOs, and one Freddie Mac K-Series (Agency). However, in the current environment, the forward-looking monthly number is a moving target and could quickly change.
The…