Bond sales in Hong Kong dollars surged in the second quarter as issuers rushed to raise funds after currency interventions in the city drove down short-term borrowing costs to nearly zero.
Hong Kong dollar bond issuance jumped to a record HK$1.28 trillion ($163 billion) in the April to June period, according to Bloomberg data going back to 1988. The bond sales were up about 20% from the previous quarter.
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority flooded the market with cash in May to cool the local currency’s rally, a move that dragged down the one-month borrowing rate to