微软守住了其AAA信用评级——这是美国企业界仅存的两个此类评级之一，另一个属于强生公司——并因其财务纪律而收获回报。尽管市场对AI相关债务的担忧蔓延，该公司周四仍筹集了250亿美元，这是其自2017年以来的首次债券发行。该交易10年期部分的成本仅为5.6%，仅略高于美国政府的借贷成本。
Microsoft has protected its AAA credit rating — one of just two left in Corporate America, alongside Johnson & Johnson’s — and is reaping the rewards for its financial discipline. Despite the spreading fears about AI-related debt, the company raised $25 billion Thursday in its first bond offering since 2017. The deal’s 10-year portion cost just 5.6%, barely more than the US government pays to borrow.
在评级阶梯更低的位置，投资者变得更加挑剔，要求更高的收益率以承担向AI领域公司放贷的风险。SpaceX的评级比微软低三级，为BBB，本周将为其400亿美元的融资支付高达8.75%的利率；而深陷垃圾级评级区域的新云服务商CoreWeave的债券，收益率已超过15%。在为AI繁荣提供资金的竞赛中，债券市场正在低成本借贷与支付惩罚性溢价之间划出一条鲜明的分界线。—— Ellen DiMauro
Further down the ratings ladder, investors are getting choosier and demanding higher yields to take on the risk of lending to companies in the AI sector. SpaceX, rated three rungs lower than Microsoft at BBB, will pay as much as 8.75% for its $40 billion haul this week, and neocloud CoreWeave’s bonds, deep in junk-rated territory, have traded at yields above 15%. In the race to bankroll the AI boom, the bond market is drawing a stark dividing line between borrowing at a bargain and paying a punishing premium. — Ellen DiMauro