Russia’s Pivot to China Funding Just Needs a Nod in Putin’s Hometown
- St. Petersburg debt chief says ICBC bought bonds in last sale
- Finance Ministry’s China plans are still on the blackboard
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President Vladimir Putin’s hometown of St. Petersburg is probing Chinese debt markets as it prepares to sell bonds to foot a bill it ran up partly thanks to World Cup construction.
A “decent” chunk of the city’s first bond sale in half a decade was bought last year by Industrial & Commercial Bank of China Ltd., the world’s largest lender by assets, according to St. Petersburg’s debt chief, Alexei Korabelnikov. Officials have discussed ruble-denominated bond sales with counterparts from the Shanghai exchange and a placement in yuan is possible in theory, the chairman of the Finance Committee said.