China’s commitment to building infrastructure in countries covered by its “One Belt, One Road” initiative — a scheme to boost development along ancient “silk road” trading routes between China and Europe — is revealed by data showing that the lion’s share of Beijing’s recent overseas lending pledges have been in countries that lie along the routes.

A study by Grison’s Peak, a boutique investment bank based in London, shows that the majority of 67 overseas loan commitments made by Beijing’s largest policy lenders, the China Development Bank and the China Ex-Im Bank, have been in areas defined by the “One Belt, One Road” strategy since it was agreed in late 2013 (see map).

If loans to regions not included in the strategy — namely Latin America and west/central Africa — are excluded from calculations, the proportion of overseas state loans that were directed to countries on or close to the trading routes is 76 per cent of total overseas state lending by the institutions during the five quarters ended in March this year, the Grison’s Peak study shows.