Global investors are lending money to Chinese property developers in record amounts this year, in spite of a deteriorating housing market and warnings from rating agencies over the state of the sector.
Offshore bond issuance from mainland property companies is on track for a record year, with $18bn of debt sold year to date, according to Dealogic – fast approaching the $19.5bn total for all of 2013. The year’s biggest deal came in July, when Sino-Ocean Land borrowed $1.2bn in the dollar bond market.
The rise in offshore borrowing has coincided with tighter credit conditions within China that have forced developers to look overseas for funding.