(Bloomberg) -- Qatar is weighing plans to tap international bond markets as soon as the first quarter, according to people with knowledge of the matter.
Officials in the gas-rich nation are talking to banks and potential investors to gauge interest for a possible dollar bond, the people said, asking not to be identified because the discussions are private.
Qatar is likely to sell less than the $12 billion it raised during its last bond sale in March, the people said. The country had $2.5 billion maturing last month and another $3.5 billion next year.
The world's biggest exporter of liquefied natural gas, whose debt carries the fourth-highest investment grade at S&P Global Ratings, raised $12 billion in March.
Qatari officials didn't immediately respond to requests for comment.
Emerging-market borrowers are racing to soak up demand for riskier assets. Saudi Arabia raised $5 billion when it sold Eurobonds in January and Bahrain's Mumtalakat also issued debt.
Read More: Qatar to Run Surplus, Keeps Brakes on Spending Before World Cup
To contact the reporters on this story: Archana Narayanan in Dubai at anarayanan16@bloomberg.net;Zainab Fattah in Dubai at zfattah@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Stefania Bianchi at sbianchi10@bloomberg.net, Claudia Maedler
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