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S-E Asia ESG debt issuance lags global pace to fall for second straight quarter

Q2 2023 proceeds decline by 37.8 per cent year on year to US$3.2 billion amid broader debt market slowdown

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Janice Lim

Janice Lim

Published Mon, Jul 17, 2023 · 05:00 AM
    • Bankers point out that the downtrend comes amid an overall drop in bond and loan issuances, including non-ESG financing instruments, as global macroeconomic factors such as rising inflation and interest-rate hikes have increased the costs of capital. 
    • Bankers point out that the downtrend comes amid an overall drop in bond and loan issuances, including non-ESG financing instruments, as global macroeconomic factors such as rising inflation and interest-rate hikes have increased the costs of capital.  PHOTO: BT FILE

    ENVIRONMENTAL, social and governance (ESG) bond proceeds in South-east Asia shrank 37.8 per cent year on year to US$3.2 billion in the second quarter of 2023, in line with a wider downturn across debt markets due to high interest rates and economic uncertainty.

    It was the second straight quarter of year-on-year decline, based on data from Refinitiv.

    A similar downtrend hit ESG loans, with Q2 2023 loan amounts decreasing 22.5 per cent to US$3.7 billion from US$4.7 billion a year ago, the data showed.

    sustainable financeESGSustainability-linked bondsgreen bondsdebt capital markets

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