Govt likely to shelve plan for overseas bonds, will first fix the slowdown

The government is unlikely to issue sovereign bonds overseas this financial year, ETNow reported quoting sources.

The news may put pressure on domestic bonds, as the idea of going for an sovereign bonds was floated to ensure there is no crowding out of credit to the private in an already tight debt market.

The report said the government wants to first focus on domestic economic woes and feels it would be better to go for it once the economic slowdown is ‘adequately addressed’.


“The government is likely to borrow the entire Rs 7.10 crore from domestic market this financial year,” ETNow reported, adding that the PMO believes the time is not right for an overseas bond issuance.

The government wants to go overseas only when economic growth is strong and there is less vulnerability. It feels a deeper study of sectoral issues is needed to revive growth in the economy, report said.

The government had a series of discussions with external economists over the past 10 days following the Budget proposal in which the Finance Minister had proposed to go overseas for a substantial part of the government’s borrowing requirement.

The government feels current local and global environment remains ‘too uncertain’ for such a move at this stage.

In her Budget speech, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had said India had a good opportunity to tap the global market, aflush with liquidity, as the country’s sovereign external debt-to-GDP ratio remains among the lowest globally at less than 5 per cent.