HK to sell US$3.8 billion in renminbi bonds

Sale will boost the city’s status as a major renminbi center.

China will offer the sovereign bonds for sale in Hong Kong this year. The Ministry of Finance said US$2.1 billion of bonds will be offered June 26 and US$1.6 billion in the second half.

The US$1.6 billion of the bonds issued this month will be sold to institutional investors, with the rest going to foreign central banks and monetary authorities, the ministry said.

The bonds to be sold in the second half will go to institutional and retail investors.

This will be the fifth straight year that the finance ministry will sell renminbi-denominated sovereign bonds in Hong Kong. The issuance offers bonds with a 30-year tenor to institutional investors for the first time.

Financial Secretary John Tsang said this demonstrates clearly the central government’s determination to make the issuance of RMB sovereign bonds to be a long-term institutional arrangement in Hong Kong.