China's bond market sees $100b foreign capital inflow in 2018

BEIJING - China's bond market saw net foreign capital inflows of $100 billion last year as the country further opened up its financial market.

The amount accounted for 80 percent of the total foreign capital that flowed into emerging markets, Pan Gongsheng, deputy head the People's Bank of China (PBOC), said at a forum Thursday.

In recent years, China's bond market has seen continued product innovation, while trading activity and market liquidity have been approaching the same level as those in major international markets, according to Pan.

By the end of 2018, total outstanding bonds reached 86 trillion yuan ($12.72 trillion), with a total of 1,186 overseas investors possessing bonds worth 1.73 trillion yuan.

Still, overseas investors only held a mere 2.3 percent of bonds traded on the country's interbank bond market, indicating the potential for growth, Pan said.

China has been stepping up efforts in recent years to allow foreign investors wider access into the fast-growing domestic bond market, including encouraging the issuance of "panda bonds," or yuan-denominated debts, sold by foreign issuers in China.

To allow overseas institutions wider access to investing in the domestic bond market, China has introduced measures including lifting quota restrictions and creating more investment approaches.

The PBOC will learn from international investment rules and make the country's investment environment more convenient and friendly, Pan said.