Saudi Arabian officials say the country may meet some of its funding needs by borrowing renminbi.
Mohammed al-Tuwaijri, vice minister of economy and planning, reportedly told a Saudi-Chinese conference in Jeddah about the plans.
The country may raise the money using panda bonds, which are renminbi-denominated bonds from non-Chinese issuers that are sold in mainland China.
An Liyan, chief executive of the international arm of ICBC, China’s largest bank, said her firm would be willing to sponsor Saudi issues of panda bonds, according to the Reuters report.
As well as helping Saudi Arabia balance its budget, Saudi panda bonds would help the Chinese government internationalise the renminbi. The Chinese currency is currently the world’s sixth most-used international payments currency, according to financial messaging service Swift.
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