Leveraged loan volume reached $874.7 billion year to date, an increase of 77.5% over the $492.9 billion raised at the same time last year and an indication the market could achieve new record volumes by year end, according to Thomson Reuters LPC data.

“If we keep the same levels, we’re going to have one of the highest years ever,” one senior leveraged finance banker to Reuters.

Sectors with especially robust activity include technology, healthcare, industrials and packaging; but the retail and energy industries remain under pressure, which is reflected in low secondary prices.

According to Reuters analysts, sponsors have lined up more than $20 billion of financing to back leveraged buyouts in the third quarter so far, which is 231.5% higher than the same period in 2016 when US$8.9bn of buyout financing priced, the data found.