China

Development of China's domestic bond market is a key step for the internationalisation of the renminbi, according to Gao Jian, former vice governor of China Development Bank, speaking at Euromoney's China Debt Capital Markets Summit 2015 in Beijing on Tuesday.

Regulators have moved to assuage concerns around issues of beneficial ownership under the Shanghai-Hong Kong Stock Connect, with international investors holding A-shares now guaranteed the same rights as any other A-share investor.

Following a slow start to the year, momentum is final picking up for the dim sum bond market with a pair of issuers looking to kick off their roadshows on May 18.

In this round-up, South Korea’s RMB deposits rose in April for the first time this year, China’s cross-border RMB trade settlement is down by a fifth, Belarus has renewed its currency swap line with the PBoC, MSCI will announce its decision on A-shares inclusion in its emerging market indices on June 9, and Russia’s VTB signed trade financing agreements with China Development Bank.

The Chinese Ministry of Finance (MoF) is set to sell six tranches in its Rmb14bn ($2.3bn) auction of dim sum in Hong Kong on May 20, with the 30 year tenor putting in an appearance for only the second time in the history of such auctions.

Volkswagen is bringing its second Chinese auto ABS transaction, issuing an investor presentation for a deal that is more than twice the size of last year's debut. The new Rmb1.89bn ($305m) deal, called Driver China Two, is again set to feature ratings from Fitch and Moody's in a bid to attact international interest in what is still a fledgling asset class for China.

The Chinese ministry of finance (MoF) announced on May 12 that it planned to auction a total of Rmb28bn of offshore RMB (CNH) bonds in Hong Kong this year, dividing the sales into two blocks of equal size.

China's currency stands a chance this year of being admitted into the select club of those backing the International Monetary Fund's special drawing rights. But at the moment it is not certain that the RMB will be deemed to have made the grade. It should be.

The expansion of the Stock Connect programme and other “mutual market” initiatives could see Hong Kong’s capital markets expand by $4.4tr by 2020, according to a joint report by Daiwa and CBRE.

The renminbi is finding support from small and medium enterprises (SMEs) around Asia, according to a new survey by consulting firm East & Partners.

In this round-up, Hong Kong cross-border RMB trade settlement rises in March, while RMB deposits and RMB clearing volume slip again, a new investment scheme is to be trialled in the Shanghai FTZ and ICBC launches a Lahore branch to boost presence along the Silk Road.

Standard Chartered's Renminbi Globalisation Index (RGI) fell in March for the first time since October 2012, the bank said in a May 7 report. The fall was a result of a weaker exchange rate, falling offshore RMB deposits and slim volumes of new dim sum bonds hitting the market.