Baidu floats its second dim sum bond to bolster financial agility amid competitive pressures and falling revenue
Chinese search engine giant Baidu will issue a 4.4 billion yuan (US$618 million) dim sum bond aimed at securing lower financing costs and operational flexibility amid an aggressive artificial intelligence expansion.
It is the second dim sum bond – denominated in yuan and issued outside mainland China – that the company has sold and follows a previous issuance in March which raised 10 billion yuan through two tranches: 7.5 billion in 5-year bonds and 2.5 billion yuan in 10-year bonds.
Baidu is among a growing group of issuers taking advantage of relatively low Chinese interest rates and increased demand from investors seeking alternatives to US dollar assets.
As of late August, issuers sold a record US$43.8 billion in dim sum bonds this year, according to Bloomberg, with many expecting Chinese offshore debt to reach further records by year-end.
