Highlights of the BIS international statistics

During the third quarter of 2012, BIS reporting banks posted the smallest quarterly increase in their cross-border claims for 13 years. An expansion of cross-border credit to non-banks, especially those in the United States, was largely offset by a decline in claims on banks in the euro area.

For the first time, the BIS released consolidated banking statistics for Korean banks. Korean data on an immediate borrower basis are available starting from the fourth quarter of 2011. The addition of Korea brings to 31 the number of countries contributing to the consolidated banking statistics on an immediate borrower basis. Korean banks have provided locational banking statistics since 2005.

Strong demand from foreign investors led to a surge of activity in emerging corporate bond markets in 2012 and early 2013. International debt securities statistics compiled by the BIS show that the stock of corporate debt securities issued by financial and non-financial corporations headquartered in emerging market economies (EMEs) ran to more than $1.6 trillion as of end-2012. But the investable universe of EME international corporate debt securities is only about one third of this total, as few securities have the size, liquidity and risk characteristics sought by foreign institutional investors.