China Sustainable Debt State of the Market 2024

By the end of 2024, China's cumulative aligned GSS+ volume reached USD 555.5 billion, making it the fourth largest source globally. While green bonds continue to dominate, representing 80% of cumulative aligned volume, the market saw a 4% decrease in total aligned volume in 2024 to USD 84.6 billion, largely due to a 33% drop in issuance from financial corporates. The report highlights a significant growth in aligned social and sustainability (S&S) volumes, which rose 316% year-on-year to USD 15.7 billion. However, sustainability-linked bonds (SLBs) face severe integrity challenges, with only three Chinese deals achieving alignment with Climate Bonds methodology. The document also spotlights the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area as a key region for GSS+ growth and details recent policy shifts, including the February 2025 Sovereign Green Bond Framework and the Multi-Jurisdiction Common Ground Taxonomy.

• China is one of the top four global sources of aligned GSS+ volume, with a cumulative total of USD 555.5 billion by the end of 2024.
• Total aligned GSS+ volume from China decreased by 4% in 2024 to USD 84.6 billion, primarily driven by a 33% decline in aligned volume from financial corporates, which fell from USD 58.7 billion in 2023 to USD 39 billion.
• Green bonds remain the primary theme in China, accounting for 80% of cumulative aligned volume (USD 442.4 billion) by the end of 2024, with low-carbon energy (52%) and transport (30%) as the dominant use-of-proceeds categories.
• Aligned social and sustainability (S&S) bond volume from China grew by 316% in 2024, reaching USD 15.7 billion, with a strong preference for offshore issuance (96% of volume) and a focus on affordable infrastructure (61.9% of aligned volume).
• Despite being the most prolific source of sustainability-linked bonds (SLBs) by deal count (213 deals by end of 2024), China ranks 22nd out of 25 countries for alignment, with only three deals achieving alignment due to issues like undisclosed targets and lack of GHG targets.
• Electric vehicle (EV) related assets dominate the aligned green asset-backed securities (ABS) market in China, representing 69% of the USD 8.3 billion aligned green ABS volume priced in 2024.
• The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area (GBA) shows significant potential for GSS+ expansion, with 163 aligned GSS+ deals from 52 entities totaling USD 69.5 billion recorded during 2022–2024.
• China has introduced several key policy frameworks to enhance market integrity and international appeal, including the Multi-Jurisdiction Common Ground Taxonomy (November 2024) and the People’s Republic of China Green Sovereign Bond Framework (February 2025).

APA

Ang, G., Caroline, H., Xinwan, T., Wenhong, X., Xinru, X., Rob, Z., Zhengwei, L., Lihua, Q., Qi, F., & Jin, X. (2025). China Sustainable Debt State of the Market 2024. Climate Bonds Initiative. https://www.climatebonds.net/files/documents/publications/Climate-Bonds_China-State-of-the-market-briefing-2024_EN_July-2025.pdf

Chicago

Ang, GAO, HARRISON Caroline, TAO Xinwan, XIE Wenhong, XU Xinru, ZHANG Rob, LU Zhengwei, et al. China Sustainable Debt State of the Market 2024. Climate Bonds Initiative, 2025. https://www.climatebonds.net/files/documents/publications/Climate-Bonds_China-State-of-the-market-briefing-2024_EN_July-2025.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Ang |first1=GAO |last2=Caroline |first2=HARRISON |last3=Xinwan |first3=TAO |last4=Wenhong |first4=XIE |last5=Xinru |first5=XU |last6=Rob |first6=ZHANG |last7=Zhengwei |first7=LU |last8=Lihua |first8=QIAN |last9=Qi |first9=FANG |display-authors=etal |title=China Sustainable Debt State of the Market 2024 |publisher=Climate Bonds Initiative |date=July 2025 |url=https://www.climatebonds.net/files/documents/publications/Climate-Bonds_China-State-of-the-market-briefing-2024_EN_July-2025.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{ang2025china, author = {Ang, GAO and Caroline, HARRISON and Xinwan, TAO and Wenhong, XIE and Xinru, XU and Rob, ZHANG and Zhengwei, LU and Lihua, QIAN and Qi, FANG and Jin, XU}, title = {{China Sustainable Debt State of the Market 2024}}, institution = {Climate Bonds Initiative}, year = {2025}, month = jul, url = {https://www.climatebonds.net/files/documents/publications/Climate-Bonds_China-State-of-the-market-briefing-2024_EN_July-2025.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }