The Chinese Government Bond Markets: Foreign Investments and Market Efficiency

Abstract

The Chinese bond market is the world’s second largest, with government bonds accounting for the majority of the market. The Chinese government has been gradually opening up its bond markets to foreign investors since 2015. However, studies on the Chinese bond markets are very few. Based on data of most frequently traded government bonds in 2015 and 2019, statistical tests including Ken-tau tests and variance ratio tests show that while Chinese government bond markets were generally not efficient in 2015, the efficiency has significantly improved in 2019. The change of market efficiency is likely from the increasing foreign investments, thus a more diverse investor base of the Chinese government bonds. Some structural issues remain such as immature derivative market, low marketization of commercial banks, and restrictions to foreign investors. Finally, this study discusses the implications for investors, policymakers and academics.