{"id":81891,"date":"2025-12-11T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-12-11T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2025\/12\/11\/gulf-issuers-eye-chinas-usd-20-tn-onshore-debt-market\/"},"modified":"2025-12-11T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2025-12-11T00:00:00","slug":"gulf-issuers-eye-chinas-usd-20-tn-onshore-debt-market","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2025\/12\/11\/gulf-issuers-eye-chinas-usd-20-tn-onshore-debt-market\/","title":{"rendered":"Gulf issuers eye China\u2019s USD 20 tn onshore debt market"},"content":{"rendered":"

Gulf borrowers are increasingly seeing growing allocations from Asian investors<\/strong>, with DBS\u2019s Clifford Lee telling Reuters<\/a> that regular Gulf issuance in China\u2019s onshore bond market could \u201cunlock access to an over USD 20 tn market.\u201d This comes as Asian investors are pivoting sharply toward GCC debt as uncertainty deepens in the world\u2019s two largest economies \u2014 the US and China \u2014 making the region\u2019s stability and diversification push look increasingly attractive on the global scene. <\/p>\n

By the numbers:<\/strong> Bond issuance in MENA jumped 20% y-o-y to USD 125.9 bn in 9M 2025<\/a>, putting the region on track for a record year. Meanwhile, borrowers in the Middle East secured USD 16 bn in syndicated loans from lenders in the Asia-Pacific so far this year, more than triple the USD 5 bn raised last year, as investors reprice US recession risks and brace for prolonged tariff volatility. <\/p>\n

\u201cChinese investors [are] actively diversifying away from US-based investments,\u201d<\/strong> HSBC Mena Debt Capital Markets Head Nour Safa told the newswire, adding that Chinese capital \u2013 often routed via Hong Kong, Singapore, and Malaysia \u2013 is now ramping up purchases across both loans and bonds.<\/p>\n

Why it matters for the region\u2019s diversification play: <\/strong>Analysts say the shift bodes well for GCC sovereigns and government-related entities trying to finance multi-year transformation plans at a time when oil-linked revenues are softer. IMF forecasts show the MENA region growing 3.9% this year and accelerating to 4.3% in 2026, outpacing a cooling global economy. <\/p>\n

\u201cInvestors are being more cautious about US Treasuries,\u201d<\/strong> Nomura\u2019s Oliver Holt told Reuters, noting that high-rated Gulf issuers are capturing flows thanks to tighter spreads and stronger credit fundamentals. Asian allocations in GCC transactions climbed to 15-20%, up from 5-7% in early 2024, according to Emirates NBD Capital\u2019s Ritesh Agarwal.<\/p>\n

Demand is already influencing pricing: <\/strong>Asian investors took 40% of Qatar\u2019s AA-rated, USD 1 bn, three-year bond last month, which was priced at just 15 bps over US Treasuries. Gulf credits also offer yield pick-ups versus similarly rated Asian bonds, UOB Asset Management CIO Chong Jiun Yeh noted. Meanwhile, early Gulf forays into Asia\u2019s currency markets \u2014 from Sharjah\u2019s RMB 2 bn, three-year Panda bond<\/a> to Saudi National Bank\u2019s first SGD-denominated bond \u2014 hint at a broader financing shift.<\/p>\n

The upshot?<\/strong> With investors shying away from US exposure due to policy instability and China still under pressure, the Gulf\u2019s relative macro stability, higher yields, and aggressive diversification agenda are making it a natural magnet for Asia\u2019s capital and potentially positioning the region as a regular borrower in the world\u2019s deepest bond market.<\/p>\n

IN CONTEXT- Is equity fatigue becoming a tailwind for Gulf debt? <\/strong>MENA equity issuance<\/a>has struggled this year<\/a> under valuation pushback and softer first-day performance. The region\u2019s once-reliable IPO pop has all but evaporated, leaving several Emirati and Saudi floats postponed or trading below their offer prices. However, the very conditions weighing on equity capital markets \u2014 from US tariff uncertainty to slowing Chinese growth \u2014 seem to be creating a fertile backdrop for the region\u2019s fixed income issuance.<\/p>\n

(** Tap or click the headline above to read this story with all of the links<\/strong> to our background and outside sources.)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Syndicated Asia-Pacific loans allocated to Middle Eastern borrowers have tripled this year as investors rotate out of US risks<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":81892,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"newspack_ads_suppress_ads":false,"newspack_popups_has_disabled_popups":false,"newspack_sponsor_sponsorship_scope":"","newspack_sponsor_native_byline_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_native_category_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_style":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_placement":"inherit","ep_exclude_from_search":false,"_primary_brand":0,"newspack_featured_image_position":"","newspack_post_subtitle":"","newspack_article_summary_title":"Overview:","newspack_article_summary":"","newspack_hide_updated_date":false,"newspack_show_updated_date":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2590],"tags":[2441,57,10],"brand":[],"newspack_spnsrs_tax":[],"class_list":["post-81891","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-debt-watch","tag-debt","tag-debt-watch","tag-enterpriseam-ksa","wpautop","entry"],"acf":{"mongo_id":"aeb1de67-9774-4c3e-b421-03a7c4f304c8","order":"3","is_powered_by":false,"story_type":"1","photo_url":"https:\/\/ent.news\/2025\/11\/1581.jpg","photo_position":"above","homepage_title":"","full_issue_title":"Gulf issuers eye China\u2019s USD 20 tn onshore debt market","related_issue":[81886],"teaser":"Syndicated Asia-Pacific loans allocated to Middle Eastern borrowers have tripled this year as investors rotate out of US risks","voice_url":"https:\/\/s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com\/ent.news\/audio\/2025\/12\/.4fbbc10e-1db9-45e2-b3f8-9362fa96c9da.mp3"},"yoast_head":"\nGulf issuers eye China\u2019s USD 20 tn onshore debt market - 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