In the end, the wait was worth it. Autostrade, the Italian toll motorway operator that launched the Eurobond market, returned after 40 years with a blockbuster deal that got a rapturous reception from investors. Absence does, after all, make the heart grow fonder.

Autostrade's deal, which raised €6.5bn ($8.1bn) through the euro and sterling debt markets at the end of May, attracted almost €10bn of orders and stood out as the largest European corporate bond this year at a time when bankers and investors are concerned at the lack of supply.