Global sustainable bond issuance rose 36% in the first three months of 2024 compared to the previous quarter, new figures from Moody’s show. This reversed a weak second half of the year in 2023. Despite the bounce back, the credit rating agency does not expect this year’s issuances to reach record levels in 2020 and 2021 due to “soft” economic conditions. Borrowers issued $281 billion worth of sustainable bonds in the three months to March 31 – up from $207 billion in the last quarter of 2023, and marginally above the corresponding period last year. European issuers accounted for around half of all issuances, with Asia-Pacific in second place and North America in third. Moody’s left its sustainable bond issuance forecast for 2024 unchanged at $950 billion. “Despite the strength of first-quarter sustainable bond volumes, we are maintaining our full-year…forecast…as global macroeconomic conditions remain relatively soft,’’ said Matthew Kuchtyak, Vice President for Sustainable Finance at Moody’s Ratings. Green bonds dominated issuance, accounting for $169 billion. Sustainability bonds accounted for $55 billion of issuance, social bonds for $48 billion, and sustainability-linked ones for $10 billion.
