Global bond issuance hits record $3.68 trillion in first half on AI investment

MacroIndustry Impact 4
โดย Nikkei Asia·Read original
Summary · why it matters

Global bond issuance in the first half of this year reached a record high of $3.68 trillion, up 10% from the same period in 2025 and up 50% from the trough in 2022, according to LSEG data. The number of deals fell 12% to 10,408, reflecting larger individual fundraisings. Large bond issues were concentrated in the United States, which accounted for over 30% of global value for the first time in six years. The biggest deal was Amazon's $36.8 billion bond sale in March, which together with euro-denominated bonds brought the total to $54 billion for data center and AI investment. Meta and Nvidia each issued about $25 billion in bonds. SoftBank Group issued dollar- and euro-denominated bonds worth 570 billion yen in April to invest in OpenAI, and Panasonic Holdings issued $500 million in dollar bonds this month. Concerns over rising debt burdens have led investors to demand higher returns, with Amazon's credit spread widening from 1.2% to 1.4% after announcing an additional $25 billion bond sale. S&P Global Ratings downgraded Oracle's long-term bond rating to BBB- due to higher debt from AI investments. Meanwhile, the BIS warned that an AI bubble could affect financial stability, and Goldman Sachs views this competition as a winner-takes-all dynamic.

Impact on stocks 6

Artificial Intelligence▲ · 3 stocks
Amazon.com Inc
AMZN
± MixedCapitalrelevance

Amazon issued $36.8B in bonds for AI investment, but credit spreads widened, and debt concerns are mixed.

Meta Platforms Inc.
META
± MixedCapitalrelevance

Meta issued ~$25B in bonds for AI investment; debt increase is neutral to negative, but AI spending is strategic.

NVIDIA Corporation
NVDA
± MixedCapitalrelevance

Nvidia issued ~$25B in bonds for AI investment; debt increase is neutral, but AI demand supports its business.

Cloud & Digital Infrastructure▼ · 1 stocks
Oracle Corporation
ORCL
▼ NegativeCapitalrelevance

S&P downgraded Oracle's bond rating to BBB- due to higher debt from AI investments.

Financials▲ · 1 stocks
SoftBank Group Corp.
9984
± MixedCapitalrelevance

SoftBank issued bonds to invest in OpenAI, but the article also notes rising debt burdens and credit spread widening, with no clear net impact.

Electrification & Mobility▲ · 1 stocks

Theme Impact 4

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