Morgan Stanley received extensive recognition for its 2004 global efforts in Euromoney's "Deals of the Year" edition. The February 2005 issue's annual awards list profiles what the magazine considers to be the top global deals in equity, bonds, M&A and loans.

Morgan Stanley netted two Best Equity Deals, in Asia and Western Europe, two Best Sovereign Bond Issues, in Asia and Western Europe, Best IPO in North America and Best M&A in Asia, among others. In addition, a strong Firm presence in China enabled it to launch all three China high-yield deals in 2004.

"These distinctions are indicative of our performance in 2004, full of intricate transactions executed cleanly and profitably for our clients," said Managing Director Walid Chammah, Global Capital Markets. "We have known our client teams were best in class and we will continue to provide them with the tools they need to succeed."

The Firm earned high praise from the editors of Euromoney for complex deals such as the LG.Philips LCD IPO, the first-ever concurrent listing on the Korean and New York stock exchanges, recognized as "one of Asia’s largest and most challenging deals of the year."

Ebullience surrounding the Google IPO was evident, as the editors called it "Record-breaking, innovative, controversial and the most talked about IPO anywhere in 2004…the obvious choice for deal of the year."

The Morgan Stanley-led Best Equity Deal for Thai Oil Public Company was depicted as a case study in best practices. As the editors noted, "the privatization of Thai Oil, the largest ever Thai IPO and the biggest in southeast Asia for years, stands out as an example of how to get a deal done in tricky markets."

Several deals were touted not only for their execution, but also for their short-term and long-term impacts on the markets. The Anheuser Busch-Harbin acquisition was considered "a ground-breaking transaction and is likely to be considered the deal that heralded the start of the consolidation of China's non-strategic industries – a trend that may be one of the most significant in corporate finance for years to come." The Calpine financing "gave the broader high-yield market an important boost, which set the tone for the last three quarters of the year."

Euromoney's Deals of the Year that Morgan Stanley won:

Asia

• Best Equity Deal: Thai Oil Public Company
• Equity Deal – commended: LG.Philips LCD
• Best M&A Deal: Anheuser Busch-Harbin
• Best Sovereign Bond: Hong Kong SAR
• Best Non-Investment Grade Bond: Panva Gas Holdings
• Non-Investment Grade Bond – commended: Sino-Forest Corp.

Emerging Europe

• Best Asset-Backed Securities Deal: Gazprom

Western Europe

• Best Equity Deal: Deutsche Postbank
• Best M&A Deal: Sanofi-Aventis
• Best Sovereign Bond Issue: Italy

North America

• Best IPO: Google
• Best High-Yield Deal: Calpine Generating Company
• Best Equity-Linked Deal: Diageo/General Mills
• Best Agency Deal: Freddie Mac