The Case for Emerging Market Debt: Many corporate issuers are global leaders
Strong balance sheets and market positions have enabled a number of EM companies, like Grupo Bimbo, to become dominant players in their industries.
Authors
There has been a major transformation in the emerging markets (EM) corporate debt market. Over the past two decades, EM companies have transformed from regional players into global sector leaders. They have international brand portfolios, dominant market positions and strong balance sheets that rival or surpass their developed market peers. The EM investment-grade (IG) index has leverage right around 1 times, which is well below the mid-to-high 2 times leverage seen for US and European IG indices. This financial strength has been key in enabling EM companies to scale into global leaders.
Grupo Bimbo as an example. In 2008, it was primarily a Mexican baked goods company with 82 billion pesos in sales, and operations in 18 countries.
If you fast forward to 2025, the story is completely different. The company’s sales have grown fivefold, to over 400 billion pesos, with 249 plants in 39 countries. The company has expanded its geographic diversification, and now the US and Canada represent nearly half of sales.
Today Grupo Bimbo is the largest baked goods company in the world. The company was able to achieve this through strategic acquisitions, a relentless focus on building a global brand portfolio, and a commitment to maintain a strong investment grade credit profile throughout.
We see Grupo Bimbo as just one example of a broader trend: Emerging market champions are no longer just local leaders—they are shaping global industries. With strong fundamentals and global presence, these companies are redefining what it means to be an emerging market corporate.
For more views on EM debt, see also The increasing resilience of EM corporate debt.
Subscribe to our Insights
Visit our preference center, where you can choose which Schroders Insights you would like to receive
The views and opinions contained herein are those of Schroders’ investment teams and/or Economics Group, and do not necessarily represent Schroder Investment Management North America Inc.’s house views. These views are subject to change. This information is intended to be for information purposes only and it is not intended as promotional material in any respect.
Authors
Topics