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Issuances of GCC Public Debt Total 415 Bn Dollars

The National Bank of Kuwait's Studies and Research Unit confirmed a decline in yields on Gulf sovereign bonds in parallel with a decline in risks and a rise in oil prices. (Getty Images)
The National Bank of Kuwait's Studies and Research Unit confirmed a decline in yields on Gulf sovereign bonds in parallel with a decline in risks and a rise in oil prices. (Getty Images)
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Issuances of GCC Public Debt Total 415 Bn Dollars

The National Bank of Kuwait's Studies and Research Unit confirmed a decline in yields on Gulf sovereign bonds in parallel with a decline in risks and a rise in oil prices. (Getty Images)
The National Bank of Kuwait's Studies and Research Unit confirmed a decline in yields on Gulf sovereign bonds in parallel with a decline in risks and a rise in oil prices. (Getty Images)

A report issued by the National Bank of Kuwait's Studies and Research Unit confirmed a decline in yields on Gulf sovereign bonds in parallel with a decline in risks and a rise in oil prices.

Gulf Cooperation Council debt issuance picked up in the third quarter of 2017 as the typically slower summer season came to an end but activity remained predominantly in the public sector, the report said.

Total new issuance amounted to $24 billion compared to $21 billion in 2Q17. Private sector activity continued to weaken in 3Q17, with the share of sovereign issuances up to 94 percent. Total outstanding debt was up a healthy $20 billion, to rest at $415 billion, according to the report.

Sovereign activity was strong during 3Q17 with $23 billion in new issuances and the bulk coming from Saudi Arabia.

Bahrain tapped international markets for the second time this year with a $3 billion issuance.

Despite Bahrain having a rating below investment-grade by the three main rating agencies, the offering was well received and almost five times oversubscribed, reflecting the strong appetite and increased attractiveness of the regional debt market.

Saudi Arabia and Kuwait issued domestic debt of $11 billion and $4 billion, respectively.

Following the sharp increase in the Credit Default Swap (CDS) rates on the back of Qatar’s dispute with its GCC neighbors, CDS rates for most of the tracked sovereign’s came off in 3Q17.

For the most part, the region’s risk profile benefited from the recovery in oil prices. CDS rates for Saudi Arabia and Qatar dropped the most, by 31 bps and 22 bps, respectively. As for the rest of the GCC, their rates were little changed.

GCC debt issuance is expected to remain healthy in 4Q17 as sovereigns continue to seek cheap deficit financing in favorable market conditions.

In early October, Saudi Arabia raised $12 billion in dollar-denominated debt almost a year after its debut international issuance. Abu Dhabi also just completed a $10 billion international offering.

GCC yields tracked international markets and closed the quarter slightly lower. The quarter saw a marked improvement in oil prices, which also helped GCC yields move lower.

Oil prices were up 25 percent in 3Q17, increasing the appeal of regional paper as fiscal concerns were alleviated. Most GCC sovereign yields were marginally down on the quarter.

Yields on GCC sovereign bonds dropped more notably following the sell-off seen in 2Q17.

On the international level, global and GCC debt markets yields traded in a narrow range in 3Q17 as central banks’ increased hawkishness and the improving economic outlook were countered by geo-political tensions, White House political challenges and stubbornly low inflation.

Issuance in the GCC picked up in 3Q17, but continued to be dominated by domestic sovereign issuance. Bahrain was the only country to issue internationally. GCC primary debt market activity is expected to stay healthy for the remainder of 2017.

International benchmark yields trended downward for most of the quarter as North Korea worries benefited safe haven assets.

Persistently low inflation in the major economies also continued to put a cap on yields. However, most yields ended the quarter slightly higher following a more hawkish tone by the unveiling of President Trump’s pro-business tax plan late in the quarter.

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World Bank: 27 Countries Seeking to Ensure Access to Crisis Funds

The war and ⁠resulting disruption of global ⁠energy markets have hit global supply chains and prevented vital fertilizer shipments from reaching developing countries (Reuters)
The war and ⁠resulting disruption of global ⁠energy markets have hit global supply chains and prevented vital fertilizer shipments from reaching developing countries (Reuters)
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World Bank: 27 Countries Seeking to Ensure Access to Crisis Funds

The war and ⁠resulting disruption of global ⁠energy markets have hit global supply chains and prevented vital fertilizer shipments from reaching developing countries (Reuters)
The war and ⁠resulting disruption of global ⁠energy markets have hit global supply chains and prevented vital fertilizer shipments from reaching developing countries (Reuters)

Twenty-seven countries have moved since the Iran war started to put in place crisis instruments that could quickly access funding from existing World Bank programs, according to an internal document viewed by Reuters.

The World Bank document did not name the countries or the total amount of funds potentially being sought. The World Bank declined to comment.

The document showed that three countries had approved new instruments since the Middle East conflict began on February 28 while the others were still completing the process.

The war and ⁠resulting disruption of global ⁠energy markets have hit global supply chains and prevented vital fertilizer shipments from reaching developing countries.

Officials in Kenya and Iraq have confirmed they are seeking rapid financial support from the World Bank to deal with the war's fallout such as surging fuel prices hitting the African nation to a massive drop in oil revenue for Iraq.

The 27 countries ⁠are among 101 that had access to some form of pre-arranged financing instrument that they could tap in a crisis, including 54 that signed up to the Rapid Response Option, which allows countries to use up to 10% of their undisbursed financing.

World Bank President Ajay Banga last month said the bank's crisis toolkit would allow countries to draw on pre-arranged contingent financing, existing project balances and fast-disbursing instruments to access an estimated $20 billion to $25 billion.

He said the bank could also reorient parts of its portfolio to bring the total to $60 billion over six months, ⁠with further longer-term ⁠changes possible to bring the total to around $100 billion.

At the time, the head of the International Monetary Fund, Kristalina Georgieva, said she expected up to a dozen countries to seek $20 billion to $50 billion in near-term assistance from the global lender. But few requests have been logged, according to three sources familiar with the matter.

"Countries are definitely in wait-and-see mode," said one of the sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Kevin Gallagher, director of the Global Development Policy Center at Boston University, said countries were more willing to seek World Bank funds than negotiate with the IMF because IMF programs generally require austerity measures that could compound the social unrest already seen in countries like Kenya.

Business

IMF: EU Must Reform, Consolidate, Use Joint Debt to Cope with Spending Needs

Poppy flowers stand on a field not far from the European Central Bank, centre, in Frankfurt, Germany, Monday, May 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)
Poppy flowers stand on a field not far from the European Central Bank, centre, in Frankfurt, Germany, Monday, May 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)
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IMF: EU Must Reform, Consolidate, Use Joint Debt to Cope with Spending Needs

Poppy flowers stand on a field not far from the European Central Bank, centre, in Frankfurt, Germany, Monday, May 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)
Poppy flowers stand on a field not far from the European Central Bank, centre, in Frankfurt, Germany, Monday, May 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)

European Union countries will face large bills for defense, energy and pensions in the next 15 years, the International Monetary Fund told EU finance ministers on Saturday, suggesting a mix of reforms, consolidation and joint borrowing as a way to manage that.

"If left unchecked, public debt will be on an unsustainable path. Under unchanged policy, debt of the average European country would reach 130 percent of GDP by 2040 — roughly doubling from today," the IMF said in a paper used as a ⁠basis for the ministers' ⁠discussions at an informal meeting in Nicosia.

The paper said that to prevent such a scenario, EU countries must improve incentives for citizens to move around the 27-nation bloc to find work and for companies to hire them.

The EU should also integrate its energy markets, make it easier for citizens' savings to flow across the bloc into profitable investments and unify ⁠laws that now often differ from country to country.

Pension reforms and a higher retirement age would also help, as would government guarantees for riskier investments in low-carbon and climate-resilient projects that would help attract private capital to them.

Finally, governments should agree that innovation, energy and defense are European public goods and they should be paid for through joint borrowing.

Joint debt is a highly controversial issue in the EU, where some countries like Spain, Italy or France are in favor, but others, like Germany and several northern European countries, strongly oppose the idea.

"This is one of those areas where ⁠there are differences ⁠of opinion, but it's certainly one of the areas which we will be discussing in the coming months," the chairman of euro zone finance ministers Kyriakos Pierrakakis told Reuters.

The IMF said that even with reforms, most EU countries would still need fiscal consolidation to put debt on a declining path, though the more ambitious the reforms, the less consolidation would be needed.

It said that if governments did not act now, the problem would only get worse.

"The 'muddling-through' approach that many countries have adopted so far is reaching its limits, and a more strategic response seems essential to respond to rising spending pressures," the IMF said.

"Making changes in a piecemeal way, or tinkering at the margins, is likely to be inadequate," it said.

Business

Mexico, EU Sign Stalled Trade Deal as they Aim to Diversify from US

22 May 2026, Mexico, Mexico City: EU Council President Antonio Costa, Mexico's President Claudia Sheinbaum and EU Comission President Ursula von der Leyen are pictured holding the trade agreement at the presidential palace. Photo: Felix Marquez/dpa
22 May 2026, Mexico, Mexico City: EU Council President Antonio Costa, Mexico's President Claudia Sheinbaum and EU Comission President Ursula von der Leyen are pictured holding the trade agreement at the presidential palace. Photo: Felix Marquez/dpa
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Mexico, EU Sign Stalled Trade Deal as they Aim to Diversify from US

22 May 2026, Mexico, Mexico City: EU Council President Antonio Costa, Mexico's President Claudia Sheinbaum and EU Comission President Ursula von der Leyen are pictured holding the trade agreement at the presidential palace. Photo: Felix Marquez/dpa
22 May 2026, Mexico, Mexico City: EU Council President Antonio Costa, Mexico's President Claudia Sheinbaum and EU Comission President Ursula von der Leyen are pictured holding the trade agreement at the presidential palace. Photo: Felix Marquez/dpa

Mexico and the European Union signed a long-stalled free trade agreement on Friday as they seek to decrease dependence on the US and partially insulate themselves from US President Donald Trump's tariffs.

The accord, which they reached broad agreement on in 2025 but have delayed signing, expands a Mexico-EU trade accord from 2000, which covered only industrial goods. The new pact adds services, government procurement, digital trade, investment and farm produce.

Mexico's President Claudia Sheinbaum, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Antonio Costa signed the deal in Mexico City in their first summit in ⁠over a decade.

"This ⁠agreement is a true geopolitical statement," Costa said on Friday, shortly after signing the agreement. "With the modernized global agreement, we are better prepared to face the challenges of our time."

"This agreement opens up enormous opportunities for both regions, allowing for expanded trade," Sheinbaum said, highlighting the pharmaceutical industry, agriculture, technological development and electric mobility.

Both sides want to diversify their exports away from the US.

The EU was hit with sweeping new duties in Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs in April 2025 and ⁠prepared countermeasures, though these were paused as both sides sought talks. While tensions eased somewhat with a tariff truce and a July deal, US tariffs on EU exports remain elevated.

Mexico has also been hit with stiff US tariffs on automotive, steel and aluminum exports, and trade relations between the two countries have been volatile throughout Trump's second term.

According to Reuters, Mexico's economy ministry estimates the new agreement could increase Mexican exports to the EU from around $24 billion a year to $36 billion by 2030. The EU exports around $65 billion in goods annually to Mexico.

Trade between Mexico and the EU has increased 75% in a decade, dominated by transport equipment, machinery, chemicals, fuels and mining products.

The new deal provides duty-free access for almost all goods including farm products such ⁠as Mexican chicken and ⁠asparagus and European milk powder, cheese and pork, albeit with some quotas.

While the updated trade deal has been ready, it has taken over a year to sign.

The EU prioritized a free-trade agreement with the South American bloc Mercosur and it concluded free-trade negotiations with Indonesia, India and Australia in the past eight months.

Mexico, meanwhile, has been cautious about taking steps that could anger the Trump administration during sensitive negotiations to extend the US-Mexico-Canada trade pact. More than 80% of Mexico's exports currently go to the US.

In the EU, the trade deal will be voted on by the European Parliament, which is likely to approve it within a few months.

"The goal here is very simple: we want to create more jobs and more value on both sides of the Atlantic," von der Leyen said. "This agreement gives us great wings to fly very high."