China's $17 bn default wave about to break record, economy slowsdown

China is hurtling toward another record year of onshore bond defaults, testing the government’s ability to keep financial markets stable as the economy slows and companies struggle to repay unprecedented levels of debt.

At least 15 defaults since the start of November have pushed this year’s total to 120.4 billion yuan ($17.1 billion), within a hair’s breadth of the 121.9 billion yuan annual record in 2018, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Back-to-Back Records?

China corporate bond defaults climb toward all-time high. While the defaulted notes amount to a small sliver of China’s $4.4 trillion onshore corporate bond market, they’ve fueled concerns of