Angola’s public debt stock — encompassing the liabilities of state-owned enterprises Sonangol and TAAG — surged 13% in the first six months of 2026, rising from $68.16 billion at end-2025 to $76.97 billion, according to calculations by Expansão based on the quarterly budget execution reports published by the Ministry of Finance (MoF). Over the same period, external public debt grew by $6.27 billion, or 13%, while domestic debt rose by $2.54 billion, equivalent to a 14% increase. In aggregate, the public debt stock expanded by $8.81 billion in just six months.
The main driver of external debt growth was Angola’s Eurobond market activity. Net of amounts used to retire earlier sovereign obligations denominated in foreign currency, the two Eurobond issuances executed in the period added a net $2.78 billion, bringing the outstanding Eurobond stock to $13.06 billion. Debt owed to multilateral institutions rose by $553 million to $11.40 billion, largely reflecting new disbursements from the World Bank. Commercial debt also increased — by $404 million — to a total of $19.90 billion.
Partially offsetting those increases, bilateral debt — government-to-government obligations — contracted by $195 million to $2.79 billion, while supplier credit fell by $57 million to $3.76 billion. The most striking movement within the external debt perimeter, however, came from the state-owned enterprises: the combined external debt of Sonangol and TAAG surged 129% in six months to $4.93 billion, almost entirely driven by new borrowing by the national oil company, which alone held $4.84 billion in external debt at end-June.
Domestic debt mirrored the external trend, jumping 14% to the equivalent of $21.14 billion — up $2.54 billion from December 2025. The increase was led by National Bank of Angola (BNA) lending to the government, which accounted for $1.82 billion of the rise, supplemented by $897 million in debt securities, principally Treasury bonds placed on the Angolan Debt and Securities Exchange (BODIVA).
In terms of creditor composition, Eurobond investors held the largest share of Angola’s total public debt at the end of the first half, followed by domestic investors holding kwanza-denominated securities on BODIVA.
The China Development Bank (CDB), which was Angola’s single largest creditor for nearly a decade, now ranks third and is owed $6.14 billion. According to the Second-Quarter 2026 Public Debt Quarterly Bulletin, all CDB-related debt is secured by oil collateral — an arrangement that has motivated the government to prioritise its accelerated repayment. At end-2021, Angola owed the CDB $13.58 billion; that figure has since been reduced by 55%, or $7.44 billion.
The precise terms of Angola’s Chinese loans have never been made public, but multiple sources acknowledge that the interest rates were at market levels — and likely significantly below the yields Angola currently pays on its Eurobond issuances. The shift away from oil-backed Chinese financing toward capital-market instruments is the approach that institutions such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have consistently advocated for countries in Angola’s position, though it remains a contentious debate among domestic economists: while collateralised debt is being retired, the replacement financing carries a higher cost of borrowing.
‘The key difference is that China typically conditioned its loans on the use of Chinese construction companies for the projects they financed. With Eurobonds, Angola spends the proceeds where and how it chooses,’ an international consultant interviewed by Expansão noted.
The divergence in financing models underscores a broader strategic question facing Luanda’s debt managers: whether the flexibility and international credibility that come with capital-market issuance justify the premium over the oil-collateralised terms that characterised the Chinese lending era.
Source: Expansão / Original article: http://expansao.co.ao/economia/detalhe/divida-publica-cresce-mais-de-8800-milhoes-usd-em-apenas-6-meses-73983.html
