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The Journal article suggests that logistics group IFCO Systems NV's refinancing of $280 million in debt with a yield of 10.875% is the first for a European PE-backed company since the market closed nearly two years ago. Apax Partners bought IFCO for $125 million (not including debt) in 2003, according to The Deal Pipeline (subscription required). The real "chink of light" is buried deeper in the Heard item: "The evidence points to a market starting the long haul back to normality. Euro junk-bond prices have surged, and spreads, which peaked at an eye-watering 23.26 percentage points over government bonds in December, have tightened to 14.64 percentage points, according to Merrill Lynch indexes." The article also mentions that European firms are facing the same refinancing troubles that The Deal magazine's feature notes U.S. firms are facing. The buyout spree of 2004 to 2007 has left U.S. buyout firm portfolio companies sitting on $430 billion of senior debt set to come due between 2012 and 2014, according to a McKinsey & Co. report. So U.S. firms should hope the "chink of light" in Europe crosses the Atlantic. - Matthew Wurtzel See Heard on the Street story from The Wall Street Journal
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The Deal magazine's cover story 
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