Oman has for the first time turned to the Chinese market to raise new debt.

The Ministry of Finance announced on 3 August that Muscat last month signed a $3.55bn five-year “senior unsecured” loan with unspecified Chinese financial institutions. The loan, which only targeted Chinese banks, attracted strong interest, prompting the government to raise the size from the original $2bn target.

The ministry says the loan completes Oman’s external funding requirements for 2017...