China

China’s push for an onshore CNH bond market is quickly taking shape with Shanghai International Port Group (SIPG) mandating Bank of China (BoC) to arrange a sale. But the scheme’s biggest challenge is likely to be overcoming the market’s widespread scepticism. Carrie Hong and Rev Hui report.

Hong Kong-listed conglomerate Dah Chong Hong is readying a loan to back its acquisition of Li & Fung’s Asia consumer and healthcare distribution business.

Rating agency Fitch went against the norm last week when it publicly questioned the investment grade status given to Chinese online retailer JD.com by its peers. While commenting on rival deals tends to be a rarity in Asia, such an approach can only be good for the long-term development of capital markets.

China’s Ministry of Finance (MoF) is set to issue its debut offshore renminbi (CNH) government bond in London as early as this month, with one Chinese bank and one foreign bank mandated on the deal.

China risks facing a backlash from countries along its new economic Silk Road unless it is more transparent, warned leading experts this week.

Tianjin Rail Transit Group completed its first international bond on Wednesday, raising $500m from a dual-tranche offering split between a three and a five year.

The Singapore branch of Industrial and Commercial Bank of China has become the lender’s first offshore unit to issue a fixed rate dollar bond this year, raising a larger than expected $800m.

Corporate treasurers are revisiting their attitudes towards the RMB in light of its increased volatility and Chinese regulators’ push to liberalise the currency, according to panellists speaking at a conference in Singapore last week.

The People’s Bank of China announced new measures on Wednesday to facilitate cross-border trading in the country’s gold market. The rules follow the launch of a new pricing benchmark in April, which is expected to draw renewed attention to the gold market internationally, according to the World Gold Council (WGC).

Tianjin Rail Transit Group (TRT) ventured into the international bond market for the first time on Wednesday and is receiving bids for a $500m dual-tranche offering.

Shanghai International Port Group (SIPG), the biggest port company in China and majority owned by the state, is set to issue a debut CNH bond in the Shanghai Free Trade Zone as early as this month, two sources have told GlobalRMB.

China’s fast-growing bond market could provider a major new source of corporate financing at a time when the banking sector is under strain, but some analysts are becoming concerned about the risk of a bubble building up.